Megaworld's Jan.-Sept. Earnings Grow 17 Percent

November 16, 1999 PSE CIRCULAR FOR BROKERS NO. 2920-99 MEGAWORLD'S JAN . -SEPT . EARNINGS GROW 17 PERCENT Megaworld Corporation continued to improve its revenue generating performance, posting a net income of P854.92 million for the three quarters from January 1 to September 30 this year, up 17 percent from P731.98 million in the same period of 1998. The holding company's sales, at the end of the third quarter rose 39 percent to P2.08 billion from P1.49 billion a year ago. Total equity climbed 41 percent to P14.33 billion from P10. 13 billion. Megaworld chief financial officer Francis Canuto said that "aside from having a strong balance sheet, the company is now in a net cash position." llcd Contributing to Megaworld's third-quarter earnings growth were Corinthian Hills, 8 Wack Wack Road, El Jardin del Presidente and Marina Square. Corinthian Hills, a high-end residential lot project along Temple Road in Quezon City, is currently being turned over to buyers. All three buildings of El Jardin del Presidente, a residential community rising on the former mansion estate of the late President Carlos P. Garcia near ABS-CBN in Quezon City, have been topped off, and completion is targeted within the third quarter next year. The 43-story 8 Wack Wack Road residential tower in Mandaluyong City is set for completion by the end of the year while the Marina Square serviced apartment tower is undergoing construction at the Manila Bay area. "We expect Megaword to maintain if not surpass this growth rate in the succeeding quarters, with projects like the Paseo Parkview Tower boosting its earnings," said Canuto. "Paseo Parkview has shown that the upper middle to high-end condo market is alive and well, and we intend to meet a robust demand from this market by launching a second Paseo Parkview tower in the Makati CBD soon." Canuto said the company looks to brighter earnings prospects ahead since development of a flagship project, the Eastwood CyberPark, is in full swing. "After President Estrada's recent proclamation of Eastwood CyberPark as a special economic zone, the next stop for us is to see who among the firms vying for a place in the CyberPark are eligible for a piece of our P500 million venture capital fund." Among the criteria, he said, are an export orientation and a five-year proven management track record. LibLex Two office buildings are ready to host IT locators: the Citibank Square, now partially occupied by Citibank staff, and the IBM Plaza, which will be completed this year. To moot the locators' housing needs, a number of residential project are rising at the CyberPark. Those include the Olympic Heights, whose first tower was topped off recently, and the Eastwood Lafayette, with two towers sold out and a third one launched recently. llcd A dining and entertainment center called Eastwood Citywalk is programmed to start operations by June 2000. The first and second phase consists of restaurants and the third phase, various entertainment venues.