the Outsider - PSE Points to Ponder

  Fresh equity gives the Lopez-led broadcaster room to negotiate. For BPI and UnionBank, the question is whether patience preserves value—or lets operating creditors move ahead in the economic queue. **MANILA—**In Philippine street slang, “Judith” is the visitor nobody wants to see: the due date. For ABS-CBN Corp., Judith is approaching twice. A Bank of the Philippine Islands facility has been extended to August 31, 2026 , while a Union Bank of the Philippines facility has been extended to September 30, 2026 , according to the broadcaster’s latest quarterly filing. Together, the two facilities were originally described as roughly ₱9.75 billion, although the ABS-CBN parent company carried a lower accounting balance of about ₱8.40 billion as of June 30 after previous payments and adjustments. This time, however, ABS-CBN isn’t greeting Judith empty-handed. The company has announced a plan to raise ₱6 billion in new equity . I&C Holdings Corp. is expected to provide ₱3.5 billi...

  The property trust reported higher earnings and dividends per share despite issuing stock for acquisitions. However, a swelling book of finance-lease and related-party receivables makes the balance sheet increasingly dependent on the Ayala group. MANILA— AREIT Inc. spent the first half of 2026 getting bigger without leaving shareholders with a smaller slice of earnings. The Philippine real-estate investment trust reported net income of ₱5.62 billion for the six months ended June 30, up 36% from ₱4.12 billion a year earlier. Revenue increased 30% to ₱7.72 billion , reflecting the full contribution of properties acquired in 2025 and income from assets added during the second quarter. The more consequential figures for investors were measured on a per-share basis. Earnings per share increased 5.5% to ₱1.35 from ₱1.28 , while dividends declared for the first two quarters rose 6.8% to a combined ₱1.25 a share from ₱1.17 . Those increases suggest that AREIT’s use of shares to acquir...

The operator’s two resorts and expanding online business lifted capacity, but weak premium demand, promotional costs, and heavy debt kept first-half earnings under pressure **MANILA—**Bloomberry Resorts Corp. has more gaming capacity than ever. What it doesn’t yet have is more profit. The operator of Solaire Resort Entertainment City and the newer Solaire Resort Quezon City reported ₱27.2 billion in net revenue for the first half of 2026, an increase of just 1% from a year earlier. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization fell 7% to ₱6.4 billion from ₱6.9 billion, while Bloomberry swung to a net loss of ₱470.3 million from a reported ₱1.9 billion profit.  The numbers expose the challenge Bloomberry faces after a major business expansion. The company now operates two large casinos in Metro Manila and is building out Solaire Online and FUNaloMax. But more gaming floors, hotel rooms and digital channels haven’t yet produced a corresponding increase in consolidate...

  Higher rental rates and finance-lease income lifted first-half results, while soft occupancy and rising receivables highlighted the challenge facing the property trust DDMP REIT Inc. reported narrowly higher earnings for the first half of 2026, as rental-rate increases and stronger interest income offset weakness in other revenue. But declining second-quarter rent and a blended occupancy rate of 64.55% showed that the Philippine property trust has yet to establish a durable organic-growth engine. The real-estate investment trust, known by its stock symbol DDMPR, posted net income of ₱786.1 million for the six months ended June 30, up 0.5% from ₱782.6 million a year earlier. Total revenue similarly edged 0.5% higher to ₱1.004 billion , from ₱999.6 million.  The modest increase masks a mixed performance across DDMPR’s sources of income. Rent income—the core measure of a landlord’s operating momentum—rose just 0.4% to ₱783.2 million in the first half. Management attributed t...

  Fresh equity can repair the broadcaster’s balance sheet, but creditor banks tied to the Ayala and Aboitiz groups will determine whether the money finances a recovery—or merely repays old obligations. **MANILA—**ABS-CBN Corp.’s proposed ₱6 billion capital infusion gives the debt-laden media company something it has lacked since losing its broadcast franchise in 2020: time. Whether it produces a turnaround is another question. The broadcaster said I&C Holdings Corp. would invest ₱3.5 billion, while three Lopez family investment vehicles—Crème Investment Corp., Mantes Corp. and Presta Holdings Co.—would contribute a combined ₱2.2 billion. Lopez Inc. would invest another ₱300 million. ABS-CBN’s board approved the transaction on August 13, a day after the subscription agreements were signed. The company said the proceeds would be used for general corporate purposes.  The transaction would inject permanent capital without adding interest expense. I&C, established by invest...

  Manila Water won the first-half revenue race through higher tariffs, while Maynilad relied more on rising billed volume and falling water losses. Their capital strategies reveal an even deeper divide: acquisition-led water security versus aggressive organic infrastructure expansion. The rivalry between Enrique Razon Jr.-backed Manila Water Co. (PSE: MWC) and Manuel V. Pangilinan-chaired Maynilad Water Services (PSE: MYNLD) is emerging as a contest between two distinctly different utility strategies. In the first half of 2026, Manila Water recorded ₱22.19 billion in operating revenue , up 11% from ₱20.00 billion a year earlier. Maynilad generated ₱19.11 billion , an increase of 4.1% from ₱18.35 billion. Manila Water therefore added about ₱2.19 billion of revenue—nearly three times Maynilad’s roughly ₱761 million increase.  But revenue growth tells only half the story. Manila Water and Maynilad are also directing capital toward different sources of future growth. Manila Wa...