SHAKEY'S PIZZA POSTS P247 MILLION LOSS

Listed Shakey's Pizza Asia Ventures posted a net loss of P247 million last year due to the pandemic that ravaged the restaurant business with the virulent COVID-19 that saw a crippling six-month lockdown.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange today, Pizza said though that its fourth-quarter bottom line reverted to positive territory, registering net income of Php215 million for the last three months of the year following the losses posted for most of 2020.

Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization, or EBITDA, also saw sequential improvement, hitting Php400 million in the fourth quarter - up significantly from Php6 million the quarter before.

This widely used metric for cash flow also managed to stay positive for the full year, hitting Php635 million in 2020. The improvement in both profit and cash flow during the last three months was brought about by a marked increase in systemwide sales. The Company’s fourth-quarter net income was also boosted by tax benefits as a result of its negative full-year profitability.

“2020 was obviously a one-of-a-kind year amidst the COVID-19 pandemic and the restaurant industry was one of the hardest hit. Nonetheless, despite our net loss for the year, we’ve managed to pull through with positive cash flows, improved cost structures, and greater ability to address off-premise demand thanks to the gallant efforts of our team and the numerous business innovations we’ve been put into place,” said Vicente Gregorio, PIZZA President and CEO.

For most of last year, the Philippines was under different phases of lockdowns which, at its peak, forced the temporary closure of 91% of the Company’s store network at the end of March.

Quarantine measures have however since eased with store traffic inching up slowly during the second half of 2020. For the fourth quarter alone, PIZZA’s systemwide sales stood at Php1.8 billion, a growth of 33% versus the previous quarter due to the seasonal holiday pick-up, increased dine-in sales, as well as a resilient delivery and carry-out business. For the full year of 2020, the Company ended with total sales of Php6.6 billion – equivalent to 64% of 2019 sales.

On a same-store sales basis, excluding the impact of closed stores, sales were down 30% year-on-year. Gregorio said, “We are pleased by the improvements we saw towards year-end which gave us the confidence to further invest in future growth, readying ourselves to better compete in the ‘new normal’ whilst creating jobs amidst the Philippines’ tough economic environment. Moving into 2021, the ability to stay nimble and adapt to the ever-changing environment will be of utmost importance."

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