Xurpas profit plunges 61% to P103M

XURPAS, INC. posted a 61% drop in net income in 2017, amid record revenues that breached the P2-billion mark in the same period.

In a regulatory filing, the listed technology firm said it booked a net income of P102.57 million last year, falling from the P264.84 million recorded in 2016.

The decline in earnings was primarily due to slower revenues from Art of Click Pte. Ltd. (AOC), as the company noted that the unit’s clients were mostly venture- capital funded firms that had no regular full-year advertising campaign.

Xurpas also posted P121.7 million in impairment losses from AOC, coming from bad accounts and “adverse” digital advertising marketing conditions. The firm said it will be implementing a recovery plan that seeks to improve AOC’s client mix in the future.

“Our focus for the year 2018 is to move forward from the setbacks of last year, by strengthening our top-line growth while rebuilding profitability,” Xurpas Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Nico Jose S. Nolledo said in a statement.

Xurpas reported revenues gained 8% to P2.1 billion, the bulk of which came from the mobile consumer services segment. The unit recorded P1.44 billion in revenues in 2017, up 16% year on year.

“The increase was attributed to the growth from the mobile games business and the accretive value of the acquisition of AOC in 2017,” the company said.

Revenues from mobile platform solutions to corporate and government clients, among others, meanwhile, declined by 13% to P566 million for the year.

The company’s other services, which includes those related to its proprietary platform called Flex Benefits System and Ace, recorded an 84% revenue increase for the year. Xurpas explained that these platforms allow employees to convert their employee benefits to other benefits, such as sale of goods.

“We remain committed to building our consumer and HR technology platforms since we believe these hold the keys to our sustained growth,” Mr. Nolledo said.

Xurpas’ HR technologies service currently has a user base of around 68,000 client employees. The company seeks to further grow this segment through its existing platforms, complemented by a new employee communications platform co-developed with its Hong Kong-based HR technologies affiliate MicroBenefits.

Shares in Xurpas gained 11 centavos or 3.23% to close at P3.52 each at the Philippine Stock Exchange on Monday. —