Property giant Megaworld Corp. booked a net income of P2.1 billion in the second quarter this year, down 56 percent from P4.8 billion during the same period last year, on lower residential sales due to the pandemic.
First-half net income reached P5.9 billion, down 34 percent from P8.9 billion in the same period a year ago, Megaworld disclosed to the stock exchange.
Casino operator Bloomberry Resorts Corp., meanwhile, registered consolidated net loss of P4.7 billion in the second quarter of 2020, a turnaround from a net income of P2.5 billion in the same period last year as gaming operations were suspended due to the pandemic.
Bloomberry said in a disclosure to the stock exchange gross gaming revenue at Solaire Casino & Resort declined 95 percent to P686.6 million during the second quarter of the year from P14.6 billion a year ago.
Megaworld's consolidated revenues in the first six months also dropped 25 percent year-on-year to P23.8 billion from P31.7 billion last year.
“Just as the pandemic began in the last month of the first quarter, we already anticipated a decline in our earnings in the second quarter, but what actually surprised us was the fact that the drop wasn’t as bad as we have expected it to be, and it remains manageable. Our strategic decision of further strengthening our office leasing business way before the pandemic started is now evidently making us more resilient,” said Megaworld chief strategy officer Kevin Tan.
Real estate sales in first six months reached P14.3 billion, down 29 year from P20.2-billion a year ago.
Despite the decline in residential sales, the group managed to generate P38 billion in reservation sales in six months
Rental revenues rose 10 percent during the first six months to P5.6 billion, accounting for 78 percent of the total rental leasing revenues. Office developments, which are primarily catering to the business process outsourcing firms, remained operational during the lockdown.
The company is set to complete the construction of five new office developments in its various townships this year, adding around 213,000 square meters of completed projects in the office portfolio.
These projects to date are already 90 percent pre-leased on the average.
Solaire’s VIP, mass tables and electronic gaming machine registered declines in the second quarter gaming revenues.
“Bloomberry is not exempt from the seismic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on global tourism and the gaming entertainment industry. During this difficult time, our top priorities are to weather the impact of this virus and to maintain the health and safety of our team members and guests,” Bloomberry chairman Enrique Razon Jr. said
“While we are uncertain of the pace of business recovery, we will push forward with our key capital project, Solaire North, as we believe that its opening will coincide with a meaningful upcycle that is typical after a period of economic weakness. We look to emerge from this crisis as a much stronger company,” Razon added.
While Solaire remains closed to the public, the gaming established was allowed to limited dry-run gaming operations at the property under general community quarantine as a means to fine-tune services in accordance with new normal health and safety protocols.