How A. Soriano Corp. evolved from 2019 to September 2025—and kept paying shareholders through a volcano, a pandemic, and volatile markets
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MANILA — A. Soriano Corporation (ANSCOR) doesn’t fit the stereotype of a headline-chasing conglomerate. It’s a quiet holding company: part industrial operator, part luxury tourism owner, part financial investor. Yet from 2019 through September 2025, it has done something that makes income-focused investors sit up: it kept returning meaningful cash dividends even as the economy whipsawed from pre-pandemic expansion to lockdown collapse to reopening euphoria—and then to a new era of rate shocks and geopolitical uncertainty.
Behind that steadiness is a simple playbook: cash-generating operating businesses to anchor the base, a diversified investment portfolio to amplify cycles, a conservative balance sheet to avoid forced selling, and disciplined capital allocation—especially when an investment no longer earns its keep. The story of ANSCOR’s evolution over this period is really the story of how that playbook matured.
2019: The “all engines firing” year
In 2019, ANSCOR entered the pandemic era with momentum. Its cable-and-wire unit, Phelps Dodge Philippines (PDP), delivered a milestone ₱804 million profit, helped by solid demand and favorable input dynamics, while paying the parent ₱250 million in dividends plus ₱99 million in management fees—a pattern that would later prove crucial to dividend resilience.
Meanwhile, Amanpulo—operated through Seven Seas Resorts and Leisure—was still in its pre-COVID rhythm, producing ₱1.1 billion in revenue and ₱213.8 million net profit, with premium room-rate improvements offsetting slightly lower occupancy. And KSA Realty (The Enterprise Center) ran like a classic cash-yielding property: 98% occupancy, ₱1.1 billion net income, and dividends that fed ANSCOR’s holding-company cash flows.
ANSCOR also benefited from market tailwinds in 2019: investment gains included a ₱1.15 billion uplift from FVPL investment market values—an early reminder that its financial portfolio can materially swing earnings. The company paid a total of ₱0.50/share in dividends that year.
2020: Stress test—dividends survive, strategy hardens
Then came the shock: Taal, then COVID. In 2020, ANSCOR’s net income dropped sharply to ₱165.6 million, reflecting operating disruption and equity market losses; the domestic portfolio alone registered a ₱784 million loss, partially cushioned by gains in specific foreign holdings and bonds.
What mattered for dividend continuity was not headline profit but the resilience of the cash engines. PDP stayed profitable—₱6.5 billion revenue and ₱692 million net income—despite lockdowns, while Amanpulo managed to roughly break even, and KSA continued producing solid income despite tenant concessions.
Just as important was a hard decision: after repeated underperformance, ANSCOR wrote down its AG&P investment to zero so the drag would not keep haunting future results. That willingness to recognize failure early is part of what makes the balance sheet “dividend-capable.” Even in this bruising year, ANSCOR still maintained shareholder distributions—supported by liquidity and the stability of its key operating subsidiaries.
2021: Recovery + record operating strength
By 2021, the company’s hybrid model began to shine again. ANSCOR’s net income jumped to ₱2.5 billion, with PDP posting a record ₱909.9 million profit, and Amanpulo returning to profitability (₱77.7 million net income) as local travel recovered.
But the bigger swing came from financial holdings: ANSCOR’s domestic investment portfolio generated a ₱1.8 billion gain, benefiting from strong equity moves, while FVPL investment gains flipped decisively positive versus 2020. In the same year, it declared total dividends of ₱0.75/share (₱0.50 and ₱0.25 tranches), signaling confidence that earnings and cash generation had normalized.
2022: The pivotal “portfolio cleanup” year
If 2020 was the write-down, 2022 was the monetization. ANSCOR’s net income reached ₱2.8 billion, primarily because Anscor International sold its AG&P stake for US$38.5 million, booking a one-time gain of ₱2.2 billion. This was the closing chapter of an investment that had troubled results earlier—and it reinforced ANSCOR’s emphasis on capital recycling.
Operationally, PDP kept compounding: revenues rose to ₱10.7 billion, and net profit hit ₱956.5 million—its highest at the time—while Amanpulo rebounded strongly to ₱1.1 billion revenue and ₱143.5 million net income as international travel reopened. Even as public markets turned against investors (ANSCOR cited portfolio losses from rate-driven valuation declines), the company still paid ₱1.00/share in dividends in 2022.
2023: Platform scaling (ATRAM) and steady cash engines
In 2023, ANSCOR reported ₱2.6 billion in net income, down from 2022, only because the previous year included the AG&P one-time gain. PDP’s profitability remained durable at ₱963.5 million, despite softer volumes, as margins were supported by product mix and export performance; Amanpulo improved to ₱1.4 billion revenue and ₱202.7 million net income.
This year also highlighted ANSCOR’s “platform investing” approach. ATRAM, its financial-services associate, became “game changing” with partnerships that helped push AUM sharply higher—evidence that ANSCOR’s dividend capacity is not solely industrial or tourism-driven but also benefits from scalable fee-based businesses. ANSCOR again paid ₱1.00/share dividends, reinforcing a pattern: as long as operating cash flows and portfolio liquidity are intact, shareholder returns remain a priority.
2024: Record profit—and a new consumer bet
Then came 2024, the year ANSCOR’s model peaked in a headline sense. It posted a record net income of ₱4.7 billion—an 83% jump—driven largely by a surge in financial holdings. Management pointed to ICTSI as the single biggest contributor, noting a 56% price increase during the year, while dividend income rose to ₱389.3 million.
Operating businesses remained robust. PDP achieved record sales of ₱11.2 billion and net income of ₱957.3 million, while Amanpulo held revenue around ₱1.4 billion, though profit dipped on tourism and weather disruptions. Both PDP and Amanpulo commissioned major solar projects—capex that lowers long-run energy exposure, stabilizes cost structures, and supports resilient cash generation.
The most telling strategic move came late in the year: on November 13, 2024, ANSCOR acquired a 22% stake in TBG Food Holdings (The Bistro Group), a chain operating 200+ full-service restaurants. It was a clear pivot toward domestic consumption—a new dividend-supporting stream less correlated with construction cycles or hotel occupancy. ANSCOR paid ₱0.75/share total dividends in 2024.
2025 (Jan–Sep): Normalization after a record year—dividends continue
Through September 30, 2025, ANSCOR delivered ₱2.956 billion net income attributable to the parent (EPS ₱2.41), down from the prior-year period because FVPL mark-to-market gains normalized to ₱1.999 billion from ₱3.746 billion in 9M 2024. But importantly, the portfolio value still grew: FVPL investments rose to ₱17.021 billion from ₱15.414 billion at year-end 2024.
Operationally, PDP showed the classic industrial reality: revenue rose to ₱9.137 billion (9M), and volume increased to 11,903 MT, but net income eased to ₱685 million due to copper-driven margin pressure. Amanpulo’s 9M results showed pricing strength (average room rate up to ₱101,738) but softer occupancy (42.2%) and higher costs, pulling net income down to ₱44.5 million.
Even so, the dividend engine kept running. ANSCOR paid ₱0.50/share in April 2025 and declared ₱0.25/share on September 17, 2025 payable October 5—reflected in higher dividends payable by end-September. It also reduced short-term risk by fully paying its ₱670 million notes payable, while continuing capex across manufacturing, aviation, and resort operations.
So how does ANSCOR sustain “huge dividends”? Four structural reasons
1) PDP is the cash anchor
Across the cycle, PDP stayed profitable and large enough to matter: from ₱804M profit (2019) to ₱692M (2020) to record highs (2021–2022), and still solid through 9M 2025. That kind of recurring operating cash flow supports dividends even when market gains shrink.
2) Amanpulo is cyclical—but premium pricing protects the model
Amanpulo’s earnings swing with travel cycles, but ANSCOR consistently highlights pricing power and product upgrades. Even in 2025’s softer 9M occupancy, rate increases helped cushion revenues.
3) The investment portfolio is a shock absorber—and a turbocharger
In bad years, diversification helps protect capital; in good years, it amplifies results. ANSCOR’s gains in years like 2021 and 2024 show how market value increases can fund both growth and dividends—while a conservative stance helps avoid forced selling in down markets.
4) Capital discipline: cut losers, recycle into new growth
The AG&P episode is revealing: ANSCOR wrote down the investment when performance disappointed, then later sold it and realized a large gain. In 2024, it redeployed into a new consumer platform—The Bistro Group—adding another potential earnings/dividend contributor over time.
The bottom line
From 2019 to September 2025, ANSCOR evolved from a strong pre-pandemic industrial-and-resort story into a more complete capital allocation narrative—one that blends manufacturing cash flows, luxury tourism pricing power, scaled financial-services platforms (ATRAM), property dividends (KSA), and a market-savvy investment portfolio. The payout record suggests that ANSCOR treats dividends not as a leftover, but as a central output of the model—funded by recurring operating income and periodically boosted by portfolio cycles.
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