LISTED conglomerate Ayala Corp. aims to raise P15 billion through a planned follow-on offering (FOO) after generating P2.21 billion from a treasury share sale.
The Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) has approved Ayala Corp.’s application for the re-issuance from treasury of up to 7.5 million Class B preferred shares to cover the planned FOO, the market operator said in a notice on its website on Thursday.
The FOO consists of a base offer of up to five million shares or P10 billion, with an oversubscription option for 2.5 million shares or P5 billion, both priced at P2,000 per share, based on the Ayala Corp.’s prospectus dated Sept. 25.
The offer’s initial dividend rate is at 6.0538% per annum.
The conglomerate expects to have P14.89 billion in net proceeds if the oversubscription is fully exercised, which will be used for the redemption of the P15-billion Class B preferred shares callable on Nov. 29.
The offer period will be from Oct. 1 to Oct. 7, while the issue date and listing on the PSE is Oct. 15.
Ayala Corp. tapped BPI Capital Corp. as the sole issue manager. BPI Capital is also among the joint lead underwriters and bookrunners, alongside BDO Capital & Investment Corp., Chinabank Capital Corp., PNB Capital and Investment Corp., RCBC Capital Corp., and SB Capital Investment Corp.
In a separate disclosure, Ayala Corp. said it generated P2.21 billion from a block sale that comprised of 3.07 million treasury common shares priced at P720 apiece.
“The proceeds from the sale will be used for general corporate purposes,” the conglomerate said.
For the first half, Ayala Corp. saw a 21% increase in net income to P22.3 billion as revenue surged by 10% to P179.94 billion.
The conglomerate’s core net income, which excludes significant one-off items, rose by 18% to P24.3 billion, driven by higher contributions from the Bank of the Philippine Islands, Ayala Land, Inc., Globe Telecom, Inc., and ACEN Corp.
On Thursday, Ayala Corp. shares rose by 1.52% or P10.50 to end at P703 per share. — Revin Mikhael D. Ochave
