AYALA Corp., the country's oldest conglomerate, said its core income rose to a "record high" of P41 billion last year, up 48 percent from 2022's P27.7 billion and surpassing pre-pandemic levels.

The 2023 core income, which excludes one-off items, was 39 percent higher compared to that of 2019 when the previous record was established, Ayala told the stock exchange on Wednesday.

It attributed the "strong performance" to the robust gains of Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI), Ayala Land Inc. (ALI) and AC Energy & Infrastructure (ACEIC).

"We succeeded in getting aggregate core earnings to exceed the pre-pandemic high," Ayala President and Chief Executive Officer Cezar Consing said in a statement.

"Now we focus on getting better operating and financial results from each of our businesses and on rationalizing the portfolio where it makes sense to do so," he added.

Net income rose 20 percent to P55.2 billion from P45.9 billion. Including one-offs, net income was up 39 percent at P38.1 billion.

Consolidated revenues reached P341.9 billion, up 11.5 percent from the previous year's P306.6 billion.

In the banking business, BPI delivered a 31-percent increase in net income to P51.7 billion from P39.6 billion a year earlier, fueled by higher revenues and lower provisions that offset increased operating costs.

Excluding the impact of a one-off gain from a property sale in 2022, the bank's net income would be 44.1 percent higher versus the previous year.

In real estate, ALI saw its net income expand 32 percent year on year to P24.5 billion, while its consolidated revenues grew 18 percent to P148.9 billion on strong property demand and higher consumer spending.

ACEIC, the parent company of ACEN Corp., posted core income of P9.5 billion, up 71 percent, thanks to "improved operating earnings from ACEN and higher contributions from GNPower Dinginin."

ACEN's income, however, plunged 43 percent to P7.4 billion from P13.1 billion on a "remeasurement gain from the acquisition of the Australia platform in 2022."

"This was partly offset by the value realization and remeasurement gains from the sale of a small stake in the Salak and Darajat plant in Indonesia in 2023," Ayala said.

Globe Telecom Inc.'s net income also declined last year, down 29 percent to P24.6 billion from P34.6 billion, on higher depreciation expenses and the absence of a one-time gain in 2022.

The telco's gross service revenues and earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, however, booked "all-time highs" of P162 billion and P81 billion, respectively.

Ayala said the acquisitions made by AC Health had boosted the subsidiary's growth, but its earnings stayed "slightly negative due to one-offs and higher manpower and marketing expenses."

Excluding one-off items, losses incurred by AC Industrials narrowed to P1.2 billion from P1.7 billion following improved performances from Integrated Micro-Electronic Inc.'s core operations and AC Motor's four-wheel business.

The conglomerate's balance sheet remained strong, with "sufficient liquidity and a low cost of debt." Consolidated cash as of end-December 2023 amounted to P76.2 billion, while total net debt reached P513.6 billion.

Ayala shares on Wednesday rose by P13, or 1.96 percent, to close at P675.50 each amid a 1.25-percent gain for the benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index.