Vol. XXII, No. 159 [ BusinessWorld Online ]
Monday, March 16, 2009 | MANILA, PHILIPPINES
THE BOURSE has given property developer Megaworld Corp. the go-signal for a plan to sell P5.13 billion worth of new shares to stockholders to help fund its expansion projects.
The proceeds from the share sale is part of the P30-billion fund that the country’s third-biggest property firm by market value plans to spend over the next three years.
Stockholders of Megaworld may buy four shares for every one owned. The company has yet to set the date for the offering. The shares would be sold for P1 each, double the stock’s closing price on Friday.
In a telephone interview yesterday, market analyst Claire S. Quiray of Accord Capital Equities Corp. said the shares would enjoy strong demand only if they would be offered at a price lower than the market value.
"It’s too expensive at P1 except maybe for individuals who may want to buy in blocs," she said, noting that investors are now buying shares only if they feel that they are getting them at a discount.
The major real estate developer, which builds condominiums for residential clients and buildings for business process outsourcing companies, plans to spend P20 billion of its own cash for the three-year expansion plan.
Megaworld, a unit of Andrew L. Tan-led conglomerate Alliance Global, Inc., has expressed optimism that the ongoing global economic turmoil won’t negatively affect its business.
The outsourcing industry had said that it could meet its growth targets this year as the slumping worldwide economy would force more foreign companies toward outsourcing to cut costs.
Megaworld is set to finish five buildings in the cities of Manila, Quezon and Taguig this year that would house 14,000 seats for outsourcing companies. — Don Gil K. Carreon
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