the Outsider - PSE Points to Ponder

We’ve been blogging for free. If you enjoy our content, consider supporting us! Disclaimer:  This is for informational purposes and is  not  investment advice. Figures are taken from company disclosures and exchange data; valuation ratios include the author’s calculations based on cited inputs. Filinvest REIT Corp. (FILRT) declared a ₱0.0600 per share cash dividend for February 2026 , payable on March 19, 2026, marking a decline from the ₱0.0620 per share level that investors had seen consistently through most of 2024 and 2025. The lower payout reinforces market concerns that recent asset infusions—while earnings‑accretive at the portfolio level—are dilutive on a per‑share basis . Based on the published dividend history, FILRT’s cash dividend per share has followed a gradual downward trajectory since 2022, with payouts easing from the ₱0.071–₱0.088 range in earlier years to the low ₱0.06 level in 2024–2026. The February 2026 declaration represents the lowest regular qu...

  We’ve been blogging for free. If you enjoy our content, consider supporting us! Disclaimer:  This is for informational purposes and is  not  investment advice. Figures are taken from company disclosures and exchange data; valuation ratios include the author’s calculations based on cited inputs. At a time when Jollibee Foods Corp. (JFC) chairman Tony Tancaktiong is aggressively expanding overseas—snapping up food and beverage brands across North America, Europe, and Asia—the absence of one very visible local target is becoming increasingly conspicuous: MerryMart Consumer Corp. MerryMart’s share price, now hovering near all‑time lows as shown by its long downward trend since listing, reflects a market that has largely lost faith in founder Injap Sia’s vision of building a nationwide mass‑market retail champion. What makes this skepticism more striking is that, on paper, MerryMart looks like the kind of company JFC could easily buy, fix, and scale. Yet it remains com...

  We’ve been blogging for free. If you enjoy our content, consider supporting us! Disclaimer:  This is for informational purposes and is  not  investment advice. Figures are taken from company disclosures and exchange data; valuation ratios include the author’s calculations based on cited inputs. Ayala Land Inc.’s decision to materially raise shareholder payouts underscores a quiet but important shift in its investment narrative: from a largely cyclical property developer to a capital‑disciplined platform increasingly anchored by recurring income. Still, while the dividend signal is unequivocally positive, the market is likely to respond with pricing discipline, anchoring the stock to a yield that reflects a premium — not an outlier — over Philippine sovereign bills and bonds. For full‑year 2025, Ayala Land delivered consolidated net income of ₱39.1 billion , with core net income rising 8% year‑on‑year to ₱30.6 billion , despite a still‑uneven residential market. Rev...

We’ve been blogging for free. If you enjoy our content, consider supporting us! Disclaimer:  This is for informational purposes and is  not  investment advice. Figures are taken from company disclosures and exchange data; valuation ratios include the author’s calculations based on cited inputs. Metropolitan Bank & Trust Co. (MBT) is once again signaling balance-sheet confidence—but not haste—through its latest dividend declarations, reinforcing its reputation as a conservative, capital‑first lender in a tightening earnings environment. The bank announced a ₱1.50 per share regular cash dividend alongside a ₱2.00 per share special dividend , both payable on March 26, 2026, bringing total cash distributions for the year to ₱5.00 per share . This maintains a payout structure that has been consistent since 2024: a stable base dividend complemented by a discretionary special payout. Earnings Cover Remains Comfortable Metrobank’s FY2025 net income attributable to equity hol...

  We’ve been blogging for free. If you enjoy our content, consider supporting us! Disclaimer:  This is for informational purposes and is  not  investment advice. Figures are taken from company disclosures and exchange data; valuation ratios include the author’s calculations based on cited inputs. What the Lopez Group’s ₱50‑billion decision says about First Gen—and ABS‑CBN When Prime Infrastructure Capital Inc., led by Enrique Razon Jr., completed its ₱50‑billion acquisition of a controlling stake in First Gen’s gas business , it was widely framed as a landmark energy transaction. Less discussed—but no less consequential—was what the Lopez Group chose to do next with the proceeds. Rather than channeling the windfall toward shoring up ABS‑CBN Corp. , the group’s financially strained media arm, the Lopezes effectively recycled that capital back into the energy sector , partnering again with Prime Infra—this time in pumped‑storage hydropower projects that will take year...

We’ve been blogging for free. If you enjoy our content, consider supporting us! Disclaimer:  This is for informational purposes and is  not  investment advice. Figures are taken from company disclosures and exchange data; valuation ratios include the author’s calculations based on cited inputs. STI Education Systems Holdings, Inc. (STI) posted a solid first‑half performance for fiscal year 2025–2026, underscoring the group’s ability to translate enrollment scale, pricing discipline, and tight cost management into resilient earnings, even as quarterly results normalized following an exceptionally strong start to the school year. For the six months ended December 31, 2025, STI reported net income of ₱1.08 billion , up 18% year‑on‑year , while earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) rose 13% to ₱1.55 billion , reflecting sustained operating momentum across its nationwide education network.  A Normalized Quarter After a Front‑Loaded Start...

We’ve been blogging for free. If you enjoy our content, consider supporting us! Disclaimer:  This is for informational purposes and is  not  investment advice. Figures are taken from company disclosures and exchange data; valuation ratios include the author’s calculations based on cited inputs. By any conventional yardstick, the bidding for the Semirara coal operating contracts later this year looks like a heavyweight contest. The Department of Energy (DOE) has made it clear that the contracts—covering the country’s most strategic coal resource—will be awarded on the basis of qualifications, not simply on price. The incumbent, Semirara Mining and Power Corp. (SMPC), retains a formidable advantage as operator, while deep‑pocketed energy groups such as Meralco’s power arm and other integrated utilities have openly signaled interest. Yet in auctions shaped by regulation, timing, and coalition‑building, outright scale is not always the only path to relevance. Quietly, one mid...