D&L eyes stronger 2025 as profit growth nears 10%

D&L INDUSTRIES, INC. said it is on track to meet, or possibly exceed, its 10% profit growth target for 2025 amid solid demand and export expansion despite high coconut oil prices.

“We’re at 8% year on year for nine months versus nine months last year,” D&L President and Chief Executive Officer Alvin D. Lao told a virtual news briefing on Wednesday. “So it’s not far from the 10% target. We’re going to try our best to hit that.”

Third-quarter earnings at the listed food ingredient and oleochemical producer rose 12.37% to P554 million from a year earlier, supported by steady volumes despite surging raw material costs. Revenue climbed 40% on stronger coconut oil prices, which rose 78% year on year, while sales volume grew 11%.

“In terms of revenues, admittedly, the bulk of the increase is really coming from higher prices, particularly coconut oil,” Mr. Lao said. “Almost 30% of our revenue increase is due to higher prices.”

Coconut oil prices peaked at almost $3,000 per metric ton, almost triple 2023 lows, cutting blended margins by 3.2 percentage points in the first nine months, the company said in a regulatory filing. Prices have since eased 17% from the peak but remain historically high.

Mr. Lao attributed the spike to rising demand and limited supply. Unlike palm oil, which comes from mechanized plantations, coconut production remains largely manual and stagnant, he said.

Even with higher input costs, D&L said its exports continued to perform strongly, with revenue up 20% and gross profit rising 22%. Export margins reached 17.2%, compared with 11.4% for domestic sales.

“If the coconut oil price wasn’t that high, we would have sold more — we could sell much more,” Mr. Lao said.

He added that the company’s resilience amid volatile commodity markets underscores its strong fundamentals. They can’t control price swings, but they can control how they respond and where they focus their efforts, he said, citing continued investment in research and development.

For January to September, D&L posted a 7.73% increase in net income to P1.95 billion from a year earlier.

Mr. Lao said he expects business conditions to improve in 2026 as borrowing costs decline globally. “Interest rates are coming down, not just in the Philippines but in the US and other markets as well. From that perspective, 2026 should be better,” he said.

Shares of D&L fell 1.76% to P4.46 each on the local bourse. — Alexandria Grace C. Magno