the Outsider - PSE Points to Ponder

  The Philippine utility’s acquisition of the Wawa bulk-water project strengthens its control over Metro Manila’s water supply—but brings heavier debt and interest expenses. **MANILA—**Manila Water Co. reported stronger first-half profitability and cash generation as higher tariffs lifted revenue faster than operating costs, helping the Philippine utility absorb the early financial burden of its acquisition of the Wawa Bulk Water Supply Project. Water and used-water revenue increased about 12% to ₱21.04 billion in the six months ended June, accounting for nearly all of the group’s revenue growth. The increase came primarily from higher customer rates rather than greater water consumption, underscoring the importance of regulated tariff adjustments to the company’s latest results. Total operating revenue, including finance income, rose 11% to ₱22.19 billion . Costs excluding depreciation and amortization increased by a more modest 6%, according to management’s cash-cost presentatio...

  The Lopez-controlled developer posts 46% earnings growth as residential sales and recurring commercial income accelerate; borrowings rise to pre-fund an expanding project pipeline **MANILA—**Rockwell Land Corp. is building more, earning more and returning more cash to shareholders. It is also borrowing more heavily to keep the expansion moving. The Lopez-controlled property developer reported ₱3.03 billion in consolidated net income for the first half of 2026 , up 46% from ₱2.07 billion a year earlier. Revenue climbed 41% to ₱13.57 billion , powered by stronger residential sales and a sharp increase in commercial income following the consolidation of Alabang Commercial Corp. Net income attributable to Rockwell Land’s parent shareholders rose 42% to ₱2.71 billion , while earnings per share increased to ₱0.44 from ₱0.31. The results show a developer successfully translating construction progress into reported earnings. They also reveal the growing financial demands of Rockwell’s de...

  The private-equity firm’s proposal values all of First Gen below the indicated worth of its economic interest in EDC alone—before counting gas, hydro and pumped-storage assets **MANILA—**KKR’s proposal to increase its stake in First Gen Corp. offers shareholders a hefty premium to the power producer’s earlier market price. However, when looked at against a separate takeover proposal for First Gen’s geothermal business, the offer begins to resemble a bargain for the buyer. The global investment firm has proposed paying ₱35 a share for an additional 8.43% interest in First Gen from parent First Philippine Holdings Corp., then launching a voluntary tender offer at the same price for the company’s entire 11.67% public float. If all targeted shares are acquired, KKR’s economic interest could rise from 19.9% to about 40%, supporting a plan to delist First Gen from the Philippine Stock Exchange. At ₱35 a share, First Gen’s roughly 3.597 billion outstanding common shares would be valued...

  The departure of the family branch most closely identified with ABS-CBN removes pressure on Federico “Piki” Lopez to use the group’s power assets to support the struggling broadcaster—and leaves him freer to pursue his clean-energy mission. **MANILA—**For months, the question hanging over the Lopez family’s energy empire was whether its most valuable assets would have to pay for the troubles of its most storied one. That question may now have a different answer. Eugenio “Gabby” Lopez III’s family branch sold its entire 25.68% interest in Lopez Inc., the clan’s privately held ultimate parent, to businessman Ramon Ang in a transaction announced Aug. 10. Ang invested through a personal holding company rather than San Miguel Corp., while the remaining Lopez family branches retained majority control of the group.  The ownership change could do more than quiet one of the Philippines’ most public family disputes. It may remove the pressure on Federico “Piki” Lopez to turn the famil...

  Stronger geothermal earnings lifted first-half profit, but weaker operating cash flow and an initial ₱16.5 billion investment in hydro projects sharply reduced the power producer’s cash cushion **MANILA—**First Gen Corp. entered 2026 with a large cash pile from the sale of a controlling stake in its natural-gas business. Six months later, much of that financial cushion had disappeared. The Philippine power producer ended June with ₱23.74 billion in cash and cash equivalents, down ₱33.77 billion—or nearly 59%—from ₱57.51 billion at the end of 2025. The decline reflected weaker cash generation, debt repayments and the opening payment on an ambitious push into pumped-storage hydropower.  Those demands are casting a cloud over First Gen’s second-half dividend distribution, even as its operating businesses—particularly geothermal subsidiary Energy Development Corp.—reported stronger results. First Gen paid ₱16.5 billion during the first half for a 33% interest in Prime Hydropower...

  Overseas sales are growing more than twice as fast as the domestic business, but weaker food-service margins, Coffee Bean losses and rising finance costs are limiting the payoff to shareholders Jollibee Foods Corp.’s global expansion is delivering the growth that Chairman Tony Tan Caktiong has long sought. It is also making the company bigger faster than it is making shareholders richer. The Philippine restaurant group generated ₱162.45 billion in revenue during the first half of 2026 , up 9.9% from a year earlier. System-wide sales—the measure that includes sales from company-owned and franchised stores—increased 12.4% to ₱244.67 billion . But net income fell 16.7% to ₱4.93 billion , while earnings attributable to the parent company declined 13.3% to ₱4.87 billion. The mismatch reflects the mounting cost of Jollibee’s transformation from a Philippine fast-food champion into a sprawling international restaurant operator. Its overseas businesses are growing considerably faster tha...