The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved Jollibee Foods Corp.’s shelf registration of P20-billion perpetual preferred shares subject to remaining requirements, the regulator said in a statement on Friday.
Jollibee earlier said that the issuance of the shares forms part of its plans to “strengthen” its balance sheet.
The approved shares comprise 20 million cumulative, non-voting, non-participating, non-convertible and redeemable perpetual preferred shares priced at P1,000 each, which may be issued in tranches within three years.
The shares will be listed and traded on the main board of the Philippine Stock Exchange.
For its initial issuance, Jollibee will offer P8 billion worth of preferred shares with an overallotment option of up to P4 billion. Its public offering is slated for Sept. 28 to Oct. 4.
The company may net up to P11.9 billion in proceeds from the first tranche, which will be used to partially finance the redemption of its senior perpetual securities and to fund its commissary and store expansion.
Jollibee is planning to open new stores in the country, majority of which will be in Luzon, while its wholly owned unit Zenith Foods Corp. eyes building a new commissary in Cebu that would cater to its needs in the Visayas and Mindanao region.
BPI Capital Corp. was assigned to be the transaction’s issue manager. It will be joined by BDO Capital & Investment Corp., China Bank Capital Corp., and SB Capital Investment Corp. as joint lead underwriters and bookrunners.
As of end-May, the Jollibee Group has 3,209 stores in the Philippines. Globally, it has 5,815 branches under 17 brands in 33 countries.
The company aims to open 450 stores this year, the majority of which will be abroad, and at least 500 new stores yearly in the following years.
On Friday, JFC shares at the stock exchange closed lower by 3.43% to end at P197 each. — Keren Concepcion G. Valmonte
