STI profit hits P241M

STI Education Systems Holdings, Inc. posted a net income of P241.2 million in the third quarter of its fiscal year, nearly three times more than the P82.6 million recorded a year earlier, it told the stock exchange on Tuesday.

In its disclosure, the owner of one of the country’s largest school networks, said revenues during its end-March third quarter reached P793.8 million, up 35% from P589.9 million year on year.

Operating income jumped 137% to P271.6 million from P114.5 million previously.

For the nine months to March 31, STI Holdings registered a net income of P297.2 million, reversing a net loss of P31.4 million in the same period a year ago.

Gross revenues for the three-quarter period rose 26% to P1.92 billion, while operating income jumped more than four times to P408 million.

The company attributed its turnaround to an 18% rise in overall enrollment to 82,629 students for school year 2021-2022. It said programs regulated by the Commission on Higher Education accounted for a bigger share in the enrollment mix at 68% from 57% in the previous school year.

“STI Holdings has gradually started to implement limited face-to-face classes for schools in areas under Alert Level 1 for identified high-stake tertiary courses and selected subjects beginning February, March, and May,” the listed company said.

High-stake tertiary courses have laboratory components where the expected skills to be gained by students are “better acquired in a face-to-face class setup since actual demonstration and practice of competencies are signifi-cant in the learning process.”

STI Holdings starts its fiscal year on July 1. Its shares closed unchanged at P0.34 apiece at the stock exchange on Tuesday.