San Miguel Annual Profit Triples

San Miguel Corporation said its 2009 profit increased to PHP57.8bn ($1.3bn) from PHP19.3bn ($433m) reported in 2008.

The company said its group sales rose 3.7% to PHP174.2bn ($3.9bn) from PHP168bn ($3.7bn) in 2008, while operating profit increased to PHP19.7bn ($443m) from PHP14.8bn ($332m) the previous year.

The food and beverage conglomerate attributed the growth to a stake sale in the San Miguel Brewery and its plans to sell more stakes in its core businesses of food, packaging and beer.

Poultry, dairy and animal feed boosted the group’s food business, which reported a revenue rise of 5% to PHP77bn ($1.7bn) in 2009.

The company’s operating income nearly doubled to PHP4.53bn ($102m) from PHP2.02bn ($45m), the company said.