By Krista A. M. Montealegre

National Correspondent

A FLURRY of fund raising lies ahead this month, even as jarring volatility presents a challenging environment for companies seeking to raise funds on the stock market.

The bourse has a robust pipeline of initial public offerings (IPO), follow-on share sales and stock rights issue at a time the benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) is hovering at its lowest level in over a year.

“The issuers have not made major adjustments to their fund-raising timelines, and that speaks volumes in terms of their confidence to go to market and mitigate the risks,” PSE Chief Operating Officer Roel A. Refran said in a mobile phone message on Thursday.

All the approved equity fundraising activities are scheduled to be launched this month, based on the latest term sheets uploaded on the PSE website.

Fruit canner Del Monte Philippines, Inc. is set to conduct the country’s first IPO this year after securing the green light from the PSE on Wednesday to proceed with the P17.55-billion offer. Del Monte’s offer on June 8-18 is a go “as of now,” BDO Capital & Investment Corp. President Eduardo V. Francisco said via text.

Integrated real estate and construction firm D.M. Wenceslao & Associates, Inc.’s P15.5-billion maiden share sale will immediately follow Del Monte’s IPO.

Likewise, property developer DoubleDragon Properties Corp. plans to undertake a follow-on share sale amounting to a maximum of P6 billion, while Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. is also raising up to P15 billion from the issuance of shares to existing stockholders.

Nickel miner Global Ferronickel Holdings, Inc. is also pushing through with its long-delayed P1-billion follow-on offer in the second quarter once the regulator finishes the review of its documentary filings. “We will push through with the follow-on offering. The consensus is still that nickel demand is bullish both for the short term and medium term,” Global Ferronickel President Dante R. Bravo explained.

With the PSEi in correction mode after losing 12% from its January record and the peso continuing to show signs of weakness, issuers are pressured to drive demand for the upcoming share sales.

“It may dampen demand given other bargains out there. As such, pricing may have to adjust accordingly in order to generate sufficient demand,” RCBC Capital Corp. President Jose Luis F. Gomez said in a text message.

Believing “the negative sentiment will demand lower valuations for the upcoming IPOs,” Michael Gerard D. Enriquez, chief investment officer at Sun Life of Canada Philippines, Inc., said: “I would think most retail investors are already invested in the market prior to the correction.”

Philippine equities are held hostage by wild price swings in international markets amid concerns over rising interest rates, a brewing trade war between United States and China and political tensions in Europe.

Italy’s five- and 10-year debt sale on Wednesday was oversubscribed following a selloff in the nation’s bonds earlier in the week amid a deepening political crisis, an indication that it is business as usual for investors despite headwinds, according to an analyst.

“Market volatilities in Europe and Wall Street were more (of) a panic reaction than reality-based,” First Metro Investment Corp. Head of Research Cristina S. Ulang said via text.

“There is no doomsday scenario on the horizon.”









