Puregold earnings climb 24%as S&R traffic boosts sales

PUREGOLD PRICE Club, Inc. posted a 23.7% increase in net income for the first quarter (Q1), driven by higher sales and improved margins.

In a regulatory filing on Thursday, the listed retailer said net income rose to P3.26 billion in the January-to-March period from P2.64 billion a year earlier.

Consolidated net sales increased by 12.1% to P58.78 billion from P52.42 billion in the same period last year.

Puregold said the growth was supported by positive same-store sales growth (SSSG), with Puregold stores posting a 5.4% increase due to higher basket sizes, while S&R Warehouse Clubs recorded 12% growth on higher customer traffic.

“For the first quarter of 2026, the enterprise experienced positive SSSG of +5.4% from Puregold Stores driven by higher basket size and +12% from S&R Warehouse clubs driven by higher traffic,” the company said.

The company said first-quarter earnings growth was “driven by strong topline growth and complemented by improvement in gross margins.”

Gross profit rose by 15.1% to P11.8 billion, while gross margin improved to 20.1% from 19.6% a year ago.

Operating income climbed 20% to P4.77 billion from P3.97 billion previously.

Other operating income also increased by 7.8% to P977 million from P906 million.

Meanwhile, operating expenses went up 11.4% to P8.01 billion during the quarter.

Cost of sales increased by 11.4% to P46.98 billion from P42.16 billion a year ago.

Income tax expense rose 23.3% to P957 million.

As of end-March, Puregold operated 790 stores nationwide, consisting of 685 Puregold stores, 33 S&R Membership Shopping Warehouses, and 72 S&R New York Style quick-service restaurants.

The company’s board approved the first-quarter financial results during its regular meeting on May 7. — Alexandria Grace C. Magno