PNB Holdings debuts on Philippine bourse

PNB Holdings Corp. began trading on the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) on Friday, bringing a property portfolio valued at about P88.8 billion to the local bourse.

The real estate company listed by way of introduction on the PSE’s main board under the ticker symbol “LTL.” Its shares carried an initial listing price of P1.20 each.

Unlike a traditional initial public offering, a listing by way of introduction does not raise fresh capital.

Instead, it allows existing shares to trade on the stock exchange, providing liquidity and market-based price discovery.

“Today’s listing also fulfills our commitment to provide an orderly and transparent avenue for liquidity and price discovery for our long-standing shareholders, while offering new investors the opportunity to participate in the company’s next chapter of growth,” PNB Holdings president Karlu Say said.

Philippine National Bank (PNB) subscribed to about 93.5 percent of an increase in PNB Holdings’ authorized capital stock in exchange for prime properties.

PNB later declared 23.9 billion of these shares as property dividends to its shareholders.

Those shares are now tradeable on the PSE.

“LTL joins our roster of listed property companies with real substance behind it—a prime portfolio of three major properties worth over P85 billion,” PSE president and CEO Ramon Monzon said during the listing ceremony.

The portfolio includes the PNB Financial Center in Pasay City, which occupies nearly 100,000 square meters of land. About 90 percent of the property is leasable.

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PNB Holdings also owns the PNB Makati Center along Ayala Avenue and the Buendia Property in Makati City.

The properties generated P634.3 million in revenues in the first half, up 26 percent from a year earlier, according to Monzon. Net income surged by 85 percent to P209 million.

The P1.20 listing price was supported by an independent valuation and fairness opinion, which estimated the company’s fair value at between P1.18 and P1.89 per share.

The company plans to raise the value of its portfolio through disciplined asset management, property enhancements and the gradual redevelopment of selected holdings.