CEBU Landmasters, Inc. is planning to launch more projects in the second half.

EARNINGS of Cebu Landmasters, Inc. (CLI) jumped by a third during the first six months of 2018, lifted by higher sales from its residential business amid ongoing expansion in the Visayas and Mindanao markets.

In a statement released on Monday, the listed property developer said net income hit P826 million in the January to June period, higher than the P633 million it generated in the same period a year ago. This constitutes less than half of the P1.7 billion profit target for the full year.

Revenues surged 45% to P2.6 billion, or around half of its full-year target of P5.3 billion.

“With record-breaking sales accompanied by our fast turnaround development, we are confident that this momentum can be sustained,” CLI President and Chief Executive Officer Jose R. Soberano III was quoted as saying in a statement.

Residential sales, which account for 95% of the company’s revenues, jumped 38% to P2.48 billion during the first half, driven mainly from the sales of projects catering to the economic and mid-market segment. Economic housing projects are those priced lower than P1.7 million, while the mid-market segment are projects priced more than P1.7 million up to around P4 million.

The specific projects that posted robust sales are MesaVerte Residences in Davao City, Baseline Center in Cebu City, Casa Mira South in Naga City, and Casa Mira Towers Labangon in Cebu City.

Reservation sales — which serve as a measure for future revenue to be recognized — climbed by 61% to P4.58 billion. This places the company on track to reach its P7-billion target in reservation sales for the year.

To reach its full-year target, CLI will be launching more projects in Cebu, Davao, Cagayan de Oro, as well as new sites in Iloilo, Bacolod, and Bohol in the second half of the year.

The Cebu-based firm also noted that it has already fully utilized the P2.1 billion raised from its initial public offering (IPO) last year. A total of 94% of the IPO proceeds were used for the purchase of key land properties and for joint ventures. With this, CLI’s land bank now stands at 976,302 square meters, 55% higher than what it had at the time of the IPO. All of CLI’s properties are in the Visayas and Mindanao area.

CLI has recently raised P5 billion from the issuance of corporate notes to further finance its ongoing expansion.

Shares in CLI dropped a centavo or 0.22% to close at P4.61 each at the stock exchange on Monday. — Arra B. Francia

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