Company Briefs: Starbucks
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PHOTO: BLOOMBERG
Starbucks
Starbucks reported a drop in quarterly profits on Tuesday as it staged a partial recovery from the most severe stretch of Covid-19 restrictions.
The coffee giant continued a gradual recovery from an unprofitable quarter in the middle of last year, as it returned to comparable sales growth in China and saw a smaller decline in the United States compared with the year-ago period. It reported fiscal first-quarter profits of US$622.2 million (S$825 million) for the quarter ending Dec 27, 2020, down 29.8 per cent from the year-ago period on a 4.9 per cent drop in revenues to US$6.7 billion.
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
Ascott Residence Trust
Ascott Residence Trust's distribution per stapled security (DPS) fell by 52 per cent to 1.99 cents for its half year ended Dec 31, 2020, compared with 4.18 cents a year earlier, its managers reported yesterday.
This brings the trust's DPS for the full year to 3.03 cents, down 60 per cent from 7.61 cents in 2019, and in line with its profit guidance issued on Jan 15.
Revenue for the second half of last year fell 39 per cent to $161.4 million, compared with $266.6 million a year earlier.
THE BUSINESS TIMES
Certis
The security services company will hire 100 additional staff as the pandemic has accelerated the pace of digitalisation, the company said yesterday.
It will also boost training for its 16,000-strong workforce as well as open up training opportunities for non-Certis employees - the first time it has done so - in areas such as digital literacy, leadership and design thinking.
The initiatives are part of its newly announced Certis Accelerator programme.
