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BDO’s 1H 2026 Profits Barely Grew. Its Spending on Workers, Security, Janitorial and Messenger Services—and Taxes—Did.

  The Philippine banking giant’s core interest earnings increased in the first half of 2026. Much of that additional value, however, flowed to employees, service providers and the government rather than landing on the bottom line. At first glance, BDO Unibank’s first-half results appeared uneventful. The country’s largest bank reported ₱40.85 billion in net profit for the six months ended June 30, barely changed from ₱40.76 billion a year earlier. Earnings attributable to shareholders of the parent bank increased just 0.3 percent, while basic earnings per share edged up by one cent, to ₱7.56.  But beneath that nearly static bottom line, a more dynamic redistribution of economic value was taking place. BDO’s net interest income—the difference between what it earned from loans and investments and what it paid to depositors and other creditors—rose 10.6 percent, to ₱108.51 billion. Even after the bank set aside substantially more money for possible credit losses, net interest inc...
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Century Properties Pulls Back on Dividends as Property Sales Slow

The Philippine developer raised its regular payout but omitted last year’s special dividend, reducing the total cash return to shareholders as debt and financing costs climb. Century Properties Group is returning more of its annual profit to shareholders through its regular dividend this year. But investors will receive less cash overall. The property developer declared a regular dividend of ₱0.047837 a share on July 17, an increase of nearly 14 percent from last year’s regular payment. Missing from the announcement, however, was the special dividend that supplemented the company’s payout in 2025. Unless the board declares one later this year, the omission will reduce the company’s total common dividend by about 9 percent , even as Century Properties presents the new distribution as evidence of financial resilience.  Last year, Century Properties paid a regular dividend of ₱0.042114 a share and a special dividend of ₱0.010529 , for a combined distribution of ₱0.052643 a share . T...

Concepcion Appliance Assembler CIC’s EPS Collapses as Consumer Slowdown Bites

Commercial and service growth helped steady revenue, but weaker appliance volumes, rising inventories and slower collections squeezed margins and cash flow. Concepcion Industrial Corp. entered 2026 carrying more goods into a market that was buying fewer. The Philippine appliance and building-systems company reported that sales of goods fell 5% to ₱8.93 billion in the first half, as softer demand for residential air conditioners and selected refrigeration products weighed on its Consumer business. Yet CIC’s inventory climbed nearly 29% from the end of December to ₱4.10 billion , leaving more of the company’s cash tied up in products, components and shipments that had yet to reach customers.  That divergence—lower merchandise sales alongside higher inventory—was one part of a broader squeeze on CIC. Its Commercial and service operations continued to grow, helping limit the decline in consolidated revenue to 2%. But those activities generally took longer to bill and collect than reta...

Ayala Chooses Ayala Land Over Itself, Deepening Its Bet on Real Estate

  The conglomerate has avoided repurchasing its own shares in 2026 and instead committed ₱5 billion to its battered property subsidiary—potentially recycling ALI dividends into an even larger real-estate stake. Ayala Corporation is making an unusually direct statement about where it sees the best value inside its sprawling portfolio. The Philippine conglomerate has earmarked ₱5 billion to acquire additional shares of Ayala Land , its listed property subsidiary, and has already deployed approximately ₱971 million through July 21. At the same time, Ayala has avoided repurchasing its own shares in 2026, directing its market support toward a subsidiary whose stock remains battered despite a recent rebound. The choice amounts to a capital-allocation verdict. Ayala could use its available funds to reduce the number of Ayala Corporation shares outstanding, distribute more cash, pay down debt, or invest in its newer businesses. Instead, the parent is increasing its exposure to a company i...

How ALI’s share price collapsed: The market priced in a long wait

  Slower property sales, more expensive financing and doubts about how quickly Ayala Land can convert its vast property holdings into cash have erased nearly 70% of its peak market value—even though its assets, equity and normalized earnings have not suffered a comparable decline. Ayala Land’s share-price chart looks like evidence of a corporate disaster. At its peak in July 2019, the Philippine property developer was worth approximately ₱794bn. By July 22nd 2026, its market capitalization had fallen to about ₱242bn. Nearly ₱552bn of shareholder value had disappeared. Yet the company beneath the ticker has not contracted by anything close to 70%. Since the end of 2019, Ayala Land’s total assets have grown from ₱714bn to more than ₱1trn. Total equity has increased from ₱243bn to ₱389bn. Equity attributable to the company’s shareholders has risen from ₱211bn to ₱327bn. Annual attributable earnings reached ₱39.1bn in 2025, compared with ₱33.2bn in 2019. Ayala Land is therefore larger ...

After the Lopezes’ EDC, could Tan Caktiong’s Jollibee be the Philippines’ next trophy asset?

  JFC’s market value has fallen 54 percent from its 2019 peak, foreign ownership restrictions have disappeared, and its founder’s 43.88 percent stake offers a potential route to control. But Hyper Dynamic’s steady buying suggests Tony Tan Caktiong sees an undervalued company, not one for sale. The unsolicited $5bn approach for the Lopez family’s Energy Development Corporation has delivered a reminder to Philippine investors: a depressed domestic valuation does not necessarily reflect what a strategic foreign buyer might pay for an irreplaceable asset. Indonesia’s Barito Renewables Energy has submitted an indicative, non-binding offer valuing EDC’s equity at approximately $5bn. Including debt, the transaction could value the geothermal producer at as much as $7bn, potentially making it one of the largest renewable-energy acquisitions in Asia and one of the biggest takeovers in Philippine history.  First Gen, the Lopez-controlled parent, has cautioned that there have been n...