By Ben Otto

San Miguel Food & Beverage Inc. said first-quarter net profit fell 20%, as lockdowns imposed to stem the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic cut into business activity in March.

Net profit was 5.8 billion Philippine pesos ($114.6 million), with higher excise taxes for the beer and spirits division also affecting performance, the company said Thursday in a filing to the Philippine stock exchange.

Consolidated revenue fell 9% to PHP69.0 billion, as higher food sales were offset by a steeper drop in alcohol revenue due to the lockdowns and resulting bans on liquor sales. Beer sales fell 18% from a year ago to PHP28.4 billion, SMFB said.

The company said a strong balance sheet and relatively-light debt obligations would help it weather the current situation. 



  Write to Ben Otto at ben.otto@wsj.com