Coke acquisition boosts AEV's core profits, but one-time loss weighs on net income

Aboitiz Equity Ventures Inc. (AEV), the investment holding company controlled by the Aboitiz family, reported a 23 percent drop in consolidated net income to ₱18.1 billion in 2024 from ₱23.5 billion in 2023 due to one-time losses.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, the firm said net income included ₱7.4 billion of non-recurring items, mostly related to an asset impairment.

Excluding one-off items, AEV posted a 15 percent improvement in consolidated core net income to ₱25.5 billion last year from the ₱22.1 billion it earned in 2023. 

Consolidated core net income for the fourth quarter of 2024 was ₱6.7 billion, a 39 percent jump year-on-year from ₱4.8 billion. 

After factoring in the non-recurring net losses of ₱7.4 billion, AEV incurred a consolidated net loss of ₱645 million for the fourth quarter of 2024, a reversal of the ₱5.5 billion net income reported for the fourth quarter of 2023.

On a core net income basis, Power accounted for 59 percent of the consolidated net income contributions from AEV’s Strategic Business Units (SBU) in 2024, while Financial Services and Food and Beverage SBUs each accounted for 20 percent. Net income contributions from Real Estate and Infrastructure SBUs were at three percent and -2 percent, respectively.

Aboitiz Power Corporation’s (AboitizPower) net income contribution to AEV in 2024 amounted to ₱18.0 billion, four percent higher than the ₱17.3 billion recorded in 2023.

This was largely driven by higher generation portfolio margins and higher energy sales from the Distribution Utility business. 

Net income contribution from Union Bank of the Philippines to AEV in 2024 amounted to ₱6.0 billion, 32 percent higher than the ₱4.5 billion recorded in 2023.

On a stand-alone basis, UnionBank recorded a net income of ₱12.0 billion for the full year 2024, 31 percent higher than the ₱9.2 billion recorded in 2023. Core operations remain strong as revenues increased by 12 percent year-on-year to ₱79.5 billion. 

Aboitiz Land, Inc. reported a consolidated net income of ₱943 million in 2024, down nine percent from the ₱1.0 billion recorded in 2023, primarily due to the absence of asset monetization gains in 2024, which were realized in 2023.

Net income contribution from the Food and Beverage segment (collectively, the Aboitiz Foods), which includes Pilmico and Coca-Cola Europacific Aboitiz Philippines Inc. (CCEAP), was ₱5.9 billion in 2024.

This was more than four times the ₱1.3 billion recorded in 2023, primarily driven by Aboitiz Foods, which continued to benefit from stabilizing commodity prices, optimized formulations in both feeds and flour, and strategic pricing adjustments, and the fresh contributions from AEV’s 40 percent stake in CCEAP, which the Company acquired on February 23, 2024.

Net income contribution from Aboitiz InfraCapital, Inc. (AIC) to AEV in 2024 amounted to ₱644 million, 73 percent lower than the ₱2.4 billion in 2023, which included ₱1.2 billion of non-recurring gain.

AEV’s share in Republic Cement & Building Materials, Inc.’s loss in 2024 increased to ₱1.1 billion, from ₱789 million share of losses in 2023, due to the continued year-on-year decline in sales volume and selling prices due to weak market demand for cement. 

In 2024, the Company also recorded impairment losses on RCBM of ₱7.5 billion in 2024.