MANILA - Profits of San Miguel Corp. (SMC) have been boosted this year by one-off sales of substantial stakes in key operating units, part of a strategic shift into higher-growth sectors such as power, telecoms and toll roads.

For the first 9 months of the year, SMC's net income was P57 billion, up 173% from a year earlier. The company said net income without one-off items was P7.61 billion in the 9 months, up 6% from a year ago.

Of the amount, SMC's beer unit San Miguel Brewery posted a net income of P7.2 billion in the first 9 months of the year, up 2% from the same period of 2008, said analysts who attended a company results briefing.

Stripping out reported first-half net income of P55.6 billion, San Miguel's third-quarter net profit was P1.4 billion compared with P1.13 billion a year earlier, based on Reuters' calculations.

This year, SMC earned P97.7 billion ($2.05 billion) from selling a 43% stake in its flagship San Miguel Brewery Inc. to Japan's Kirin Holdings and P38.8 billion from selling its domestic beer brands and assets to its brewery unit in April.

Meralco battle eyed

At present, SMC owns 27% of Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) and controls about 43% with its allies. It wants to take a majority stake to support its entry into telecoms, a venture it set up with partner Qatar Telecommunications Co.

Last week, SMC's business partner Henry Sy Jr., son of the Philippines' leading tycoon, offered to buy a Meralco stake held by the Lopez business family for $940 million.

The Lopez family is set to decide on Thursday either to accept the offer from the Sy group or that from another Meralco shareholder, the PLDT group.

San Miguel's B shares open to all investors closed up 2.3% and its A shares exclusive to locals climbed 3.1%, outpacing the 1.3% gain in the main index.