DITO CME losses widen; Chelsea reduces net loss

UY-LED DITO CME Holdings Corp. saw its attributable net loss for the third quarter widen to P5.9 billion from a loss of P3.3 billion previously, mainly due to higher expenses despite a surge in revenues.

Revenues for the period jumped to P2 billion from P796.1 million in the same period a year ago, the company’s third-quarter financial performance report shows.

Expenses went up 34% to P5.1 billion from P3.8 billion previously. It also reported a non-operating expense of P7.9 billion, up 147% from P3.2 billion previously.

For the nine months that ended Sept. 30, the company’s attributable net loss jumped to P14.2 billion from a loss of P5.3 billion in 2021.

Revenues for the period surged 366% to P5 billion, while cost and expenses increased 88% to P14.9 billion.

“This was mainly due to higher operating expenses and higher other charges offset by gross revenue generated from the start of DITO Telecommunity Corp.’s commercial operations since March 8, 2021,” the company said.

NOW Corp., one of DITO’s competitors in the telecommunications space, saw its attributable net income for the quarter slightly improve to P7.1 million from P7 million in the same period a year earlier. For the nine months that ended Sept. 30, NOW Corp.’s attributable net income grew 6% to P11.7 million from P11 million previously.

Meanwhile, Chelsea Logistics and Infrastructure Holdings Corp., an Uy-led shipping and logistics company, saw its third-quarter net loss fall 57% to P489 million from P1.13 billion last year.

“The Chelsea group sustained its recovery in the third quarter with continued year-on-year and quarter-on-quarter increases in its topline, which resulted in lower net losses compared to the same period last year and on a sequential basis,” the company said in a statement.

Chelsea saw its revenues go up 50% this quarter to P1.717 billion from P1.142 billion in the same quarter last year, with positive growth across segments.

“Remarkable growth was seen in passage revenues, which increased more than 7x,” Chelsea noted.

“The ongoing recovery is markedly evident on a year-to-date basis, with revenues for the first nine months of 2022 growing 41% to P4.630 billion,” it added.

Chelsea saw its freight segment’s revenue grow year on year by 7% to P850 million.

“Freight remained the most significant revenue contributor for the quarter accounting for 53% of total revenues,” it noted.

Meanwhile, cost of sales and services in the January-to-September period grew 19% to P4.276 billion as petroleum prices soared year on year.

Chelsea President and Chief Executive Officer Chryss Alfonsus V. Damuy said, “The implementation of our recovery plans continues to bear fruit as shown by the third quarter results with all segments reporting positive revenue growth both on year-on-year and sequential bases, leading to a reduction in net losses.”

“As by nature, the shipping industry is a high capital expenditure business, fixed costs account for a huge portion of operating costs. Thus, with the continued significant growth in revenue, the company will soon outpace these costs. We will continue to build on this positive momentum to bring all our revenue segments back to pre-lockdown levels as soon as possible,” he added. — Arjay L. Balinbin