Posted on October 07, 2012 10:41:04 PM
[ BusinessWorld Online ]
PROPERTY DEVELOPER Vista Land &
Lifescapes, Inc. plans to offer next month the maiden issue of its Homebuilder
Bonds, worth roughly P500 million, amid expected strong investor demand, a
senior company official said on Thursday last week.
“The first tranche is expected to be
launched in November,” Ricardo B. Tan, Jr., Vista Land’s chief financial
officer and compliance officer, said in a text message when asked for a
timetable for the company’s Homebuilder Bonds that were approved by the
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) last Sept. 24.
Vista Land aims to offer as much as
P2.5 billion in Homebuilder Bonds to the company’s traditional low- to
middle-income market base in order to raise funds for corporate purposes and
attract more buyers of the company’s properties.
The company expects to raise P468.93
million in net proceeds from the first tranche of P500.4 million that will fall
due in 2015, which may be further expanded to a maximum of P834 million due in
2017, the bonds’ registration statement at the SEC read.
For the first tranche, the bonds will
have a 5%-6.75% per annum interest rate and P180,000 minimum subscription
payable through 36 monthly payments of P5,000.
Upon the bonds’ maturity, investors
may opt to use the proceeds to purchase a Vista Land property, or as cash
pay-out.
Investment & Capital Corp. of the
Philippines and RCBC Capital Corp. will serve as underwriters.
The company expects good market reception
for the bonds.
“We expect robust demand from retail
investors -- hopefully individuals who aim to save to put up enough funds for a
down payment for, say, a Camella home,” Mr. Tan said, referring to Vista Land’s
flagship low-cost residential brand, Camella Homes.
Vista Land has so far delivered about
200,000 units to buyers since 1977, and claims to have presence in over 50
cities and municipalities nationwide, the company’s Web site read.
In the first quarter, the company
bared plans to develop by yearend eight residential condominiums worth a total
of P10 billion and 32 residential subdivisions worth P32 billion.
The developer targets P28 billion to
P30 billion in reservation revenues by yearend, compared to a 2011 goal of P24
billion from 23 projects, it said last May. For 2012, Vista Land had programmed
capital expenditure of P15 billion, to be used mostly for Camella Homes, which
sells residential units valued at P3.5 million and below.
The real estate firm grew its net
income by 25.86% to P2.19 billion in the first half from P1.74 billion in the
same six months last year, buoyed by revenues that rose 22.7% to P8.1 billion
from P6.6 billion in the same periods.
Vista Land shares slid by one centavo
or 0.21% to P4.75 of Friday last week from P4.76 last Thursday. -- Franz
Jonathan G. de la Fuente
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