Ayala Corporation, one of the Philippines’ biggest conglomerates (trading as AC on the stock exchange), announced that it maintained its core profit at ₱11.2 billion for the first quarter of 2026, according to a disclosure filed with the Philippine Stock Exchange on May 13, 2026.

What is Core Profit?

Think of core profit as the “real” money a company makes from its regular business operations. It’s like counting only the allowance you earn from regular chores, not the one-time birthday money from your grandparents. Ayala removes special one-time items to show what the company actually earns from running its businesses day-to-day.

The Big Picture: Who Helped and Who Struggled

Ayala Corporation is like a parent company that owns several different businesses. Some of its “children” did well this quarter, while others faced challenges.

The Winners:

• BPI (Bank of the Philippine Islands): The bank’s earnings grew by 2% to ₱16.9 billion
• Globe Telecom: The telecommunications company saw its core earnings increase by 9% to ₱4.9 billion
• ACEIC (AC Energy & Infrastructure): This energy holding company posted a 60% jump in earnings to ₱2.6 billion

The Challengers:

• Ayala Land (ALI): The real estate business saw its earnings drop by 23% to ₱4.5 billion
• Mynt (the company behind GCash): Contributed less because Ayala now owns a smaller piece after Mitsubishi invested in 2025
• Manila Water Company: Provided lower dividend income

Actual Net Income: A Different Story

When Ayala counted everything including one-time special items, its actual net income was ₱12 billion, which is 5% lower than last year. This happened mainly because in the first quarter of 2025, Ayala recorded a special one-time gain of ₱1.7 billion when MUFG (a Japanese bank) invested in Mynt.

How Each Business Performed

BPI (Banking): Growing but More Cautious

BPI earned ₱16.9 billion, a 2% increase, though its Return on Equity (a measure of how well it uses investors’ money) dropped from 15.4% to 14.3%.

What went well:

• Total revenues jumped 14% to ₱50.9 billion
• Loans grew 14% to ₱2.6 trillion (that’s ₱2,600 billion!)
• Customer deposits increased 10% to ₱2.8 trillion

What was challenging:

• Operating expenses went up 16% to ₱23.5 billion due to technology upgrades and more staff
• The bank set aside 83% more money (₱4.4 billion) for potential bad loans, showing careful risk management

Globe (Telecommunications): Strong Data Demand

Globe’s core net income rose 9% to ₱4.9 billion as more Filipinos used mobile data and internet services.

Key highlights:

• Total revenues grew 5% to ₱42 billion
• Mobile data usage remained strong despite fewer people using traditional voice calls and text messages
• Home broadband revenues increased 6% to ₱6.2 billion as more households got fiber internet
• GCash (through Mynt) contributed ₱1.9 billion, representing 30% of Globe’s pre-tax profit

Globe spent ₱12.7 billion (up 51%) on network improvements to handle growing internet usage.

ACEN (Power/Energy): Growing Renewable Energy

ACEN’s core net income fell 24% to ₱1.5 billion, but this requires explanation. While the company generated more electricity from new international plants and Ilocos operations recovered well, these gains were offset by higher depreciation costs (as equipment gets older) and financing costs.

When including one-time items, ACEN’s net income actually rose 50% to ₱2.9 billion.

Energy generation:

• Total renewable energy output grew 32% to 2,230 gigawatt-hours
• Philippine renewable plants increased output by 28% after Ilocos Norte wind farms recovered
• International plants grew output by 33% with help from Australian and Laos facilities

ACEN now has 7,083 megawatts of capacity: 4,300 MW already operating and 2,800 MW under construction.

Ayala Land (Real Estate): Facing Headwinds

Ayala Land’s net income dropped 23% to ₱4.5 billion as the property development business slowed down, though shopping malls, offices, hotels, and warehouses showed growth.

What declined:

• Property development revenues fell 27% to ₱20.3 billion
• Residential revenues decreased 21% to ₱17.4 billion
• Property sales reached ₱28.2 billion, down 22%, with no new project launches during the period

What grew:

• Shopping center revenues increased 2% to ₱5.8 billion from improved mall performance
• Hotels and resorts jumped 30% to ₱3.5 billion, helped by renovated properties and the newly acquired New World Makati hotel
• Industrial real estate (warehouses) grew 23% to ₱439 million

Other Businesses

AC Health: Posted a net loss of ₱452 million (worse than ₱49 million loss last year) as higher staff costs outpaced 24% revenue growth. The company operates hospitals, clinics, and pharmacies including FEU-NRMF, The Cancer Hospital, Healthway, and Generika drugstores.

AC Mobility (Electric Vehicles): Reduced its core net loss to ₱309 million from ₱367 million. Total vehicle sales jumped 35% to 12,199 units, primarily from BYD. The company now operates 101 charging points across 194 locations.

IMI (International Manufacturing): Earned $18.5 million versus $3.7 million last year, driven by improved profitability and lower financing costs despite flat revenues.

AC Logistics: Narrowed its net loss to ₱167 million from ₱423 million, supported by lower variable costs, disciplined spending, and better revenue quality.

Financial Strength: The Company’s Piggy Bank

Ayala Corporation maintains a strong financial position:

• Consolidated cash: ₱71.9 billion (total cash across all businesses)
• Parent company cash: ₱15.9 billion (up 15%)
• Available credit facilities: ₱79.7 billion in backup funding
• Consolidated net debt: ₱667.6 billion
• Debt-to-equity ratio: 0.73x (meaning for every peso of owner’s money, the company borrowed 73 centavos)

What the CEO Says

According to Ayala CEO Cezar P. Consing: “Given global macro conditions, our near-term focus is on resiliency through stronger cash generation, prudent cost management, and disciplined capital allocation. Our portfolio is positioned for long-term value creation.”

In simpler terms: The company is focusing on generating more cash, spending carefully, and investing wisely to create value over time, especially given uncertain global economic conditions.

About Ayala Corporation

Ayala Corporation (PSE: AC) is one of the Philippines’ oldest and largest conglomerates. The company has 620,413,577 common shares outstanding plus various preferred share classes. It operates major businesses in banking (BPI), telecommunications (Globe), real estate (Ayala Land), power generation (ACEN), water (Manila Water), and emerging sectors like health, mobility, logistics, and manufacturing.

This article is based on the company’s official press release and disclosures filed with the Philippine Stock Exchange’s Electronic Disclosure Generation Technology (PSE EDGE) system. For the complete and official version of the announcement, readers may visit the PSE EDGE website and search for the company’s filing directly.