CPG eyes P2B from preferred shares

CENTURY PROPERTIES Group, Inc. (CPG) looks to raise up to P2 billion from the issuance of preferred shares, it said on Tuesday.

The Antonio-led property developer said in a disclosure that its board of directors has approved the plan to offer 10 million preferred A shares with an oversubscription option of up to 10 million preferred shares at P100 each.

The issuance will come from the reclassification of three billion common shares with a par value of 53 centavos each to three billion preferred shares with a par value of 53 centavos apiece.

The share conversion was approved by its stockholders on Sept. 23. This will be subjected to further approval from the Securities and Exchange Commission. The company has already filed an application with the commission for clearance.

Preferred shares typically have no voting rights, but are prioritized in the distribution of cash dividends.

CPG earlier said that the reclassification of the common shares is part of a capital raising activity which should benefit the company since there will be no increase in its debt-to-equity ratio.

The plan to reclassify the company’s common shares into preferred shares dates back to May 2017, which also included the increase in the company’s authorized capital stock to P10.95 billion from P9.54 billion. This had already been approved by CPG’s shareholders.

CPG then revised the plan last August to no longer include the increase in authorized capital stock.

The company is spending P30 billion in capital expenditures over the next three years to expand its leasing assets, in-city residential towers, and affordable housing projects.

CPG’s net income grew 63% to P704.56 million in the first six months of 2019, following a 24% increase in gross revenues to P5.45 billion.

Shares in CPG ended flat at 56 centavos each at the stock exchange on Tuesday. — Arra B. Francia