CLI on track to breach P1.2-B income target for 2017

CEBU LANDMASTERS, Inc. (CLI) said it remains on track to surpass its target of P1.2 billion in earnings for 2017, amid a 105% profit surge during the first nine months of the year.

The Cebu-based property developer generated a net income of P940 million in the first three quarters of 2017, higher than the P459 million it posted in the same period in 2016. The increase in earnings comes on the back of a 68% climb in revenues to P2.736 billion during the period.

“We’re very pleased with our company’s performance this year, but we still have more projects to launch for the balance of 2017,” CLI President and Chief Executive Officer Jose R. Soberano III said in a statement.

The company has so far launched eight out of 14 projects lined up for 2017, worth a total of P17.7 billion. Among the launched projects are its Casa Mira brands across Naga, Cebu, and Sibulan, Negros Occidental, as well as MesaTierra Garden Residences in Davao City.

For the remainder of 2017, CLI will be launching six more projects. This includes Astra Centre, a mixed-use development in Cebu City covering 10,000 square meters of retail space accompanied by 467 residential units and 158 hotel units.

The company will also be launching two projects in Cebu — Casa Mira Towers with 727 units, and Base Line Prestige with 351 units.

CLI benefited from new project launches as it delivered P3.66 billion in reservation sales by the end of the third quarter of 2017. This surpassed the company’s full-year reservation sales in 2016 by 26%, which stood at P2.95 billion.

In total, the listed firm has 42 developments with 16,006 units currently in various stages of construction, worth P45.03 billion. Residential condominiums account for bulk of CLI’s projects at 52%, followed by residential subdivisions at 26%. Commercial developments represent 16% of CLI’s project mix while the hotel segment account for 6%.

In terms of pricing, CLI projects are mostly for the mid-market and economic housing segment, which makes up 43.92% and 40.55% of the business, respectively. High-end residential projects take up 14.46% of the pie while the remaining 1.07% is for socialized housing.

The homegrown property developer has been able to ramp up its project launches and developments through an initial public offering last June, where it raised P2.02 billion. CLI reported that 28% of the total proceeds have already been used for key land acquisitions and joint venture agreements.

Shares in CLI climbed 14 centavos or 2.85% to P5.05 each at the Philippine Stock Exchange on Monday. — Arra B. Francia