|
Security Bank Corporation (PSE: SECB) continues
its track record for achieving stellar shareholder
value with a 20% return on equity achieved on the
back of a 9-month net income of PhP 1.83 billion,
up by PhP 480 million vis-à-vis the PhP 1.35
billion from the same period in 2006. The
impressive 36% growth in net income is consistent
with the Bank’s sustained growth in profitability
over the last three years.
A crucial component of its performance over the
past nine months is a remarkable 26% growth in its
loan portfolio to PhP 42.3 billion which helped
propel SECB’s year-to-date net interest income to
PhP 3.4 billion, a 25% increase over the same
period last year. Security Bank Corporation
President and Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Alberto
S. Villarosa explained: “We have directed
considerable focus and energy in shifting our
business towards steadily building quality loan
assets with an enhanced yield profile and
leveraging on the customer relationships
cultivated over the last few years to further
improve the other income component of our business
as we anticipated a more challenging environment
for generating trading gains.”
Security Bank’s other income performance, as
highlighted by Mr. Villarosa, likewise reflected
substantial growth increasing 15% to PhP 2.1
billion by the end of the third quarter 2007. Mr.
Carlos M. Borromeo, Security Bank Corporation
Chief Financial Officer, expounded further on the
bank’s other income performance: “The numbers are
considerable. We were able to achieve a very
significant PhP 217 million or 51% growth in
service charges to close the nine month period at
PhP 648 million. This resulted from the increased
customer base and deposit base we have built. We
have also reflected a 69% increase in
miscellaneous income to PhP 450 million with
reduction in asset disposal losses that
characterized the same nine month period the
previous year.” The healthy growth in these
other income components offset the 12% reduction
in foreign exchange and trading gains to close the
period at PhP 959 million.
In a related statement, Mr. Carlos M. Borromeo,
Chief Financial Officer explained: “We directed a
significant amount of focus to building an
increased customer base that contributed greatly
to the exemplary growth in fees and service
charges. This is in consonance with our strategy
to build a greater component of recurring revenues
in anticipation of a more challenging environment
for generating opportunistic trading gain
revenues”
Year-to-date operating expenses registered PhP 3.2
billion, up 17% over the PhP 2.8 billion recorded
a year earlier, arising from a combination of
investments in the bank’s workforce and one-time
expenses.
Aside from the significant shareholder return
achieved, the Bank’s further leveraged on its
asset base, accomplishing an average return on
assets of 1.8%. The combined results translate to
earnings per share for the nine-month period of
PhP 5.56 per share versus PhP 4.11 per share the
prior year. The bank continues to register
superior results which have resulted in a 16%
increase in its share price from PhP 65.50 per
share at year-end 2006 to the current level of PhP
76.00 per share. |
