Share prices edge up on late bargain-hunting

Share prices moved tentatively, struggling in and out of the red throughout the session, before finally settling a tad higher yesterday on a late buying binge in most blue chips.

The 30-company Phisix added 2.08 points or 0.14 percent to 1470.52 while the broader All-Shares index rose 5.52 point of 0.76 percent to 733.44, although, barely an improvement from the flat drift over the past two days.

With President Estrada’s impeachment trial set to start next month, investors went on a rotational buying, shifting their placements with a mix of bargain-hunting and profit-taking to consolidate their portfolio and take advantage of the lull in the political arena.

Compared with the two prior sessions, the mood was generally more upbeat as advancing stocks outnumbered losers, 41 to 30, with 38 other issues holding steady.

The sub-indices also finished in positive territory, except for the drop in the financial services sector.

Turnover again improved as a total of P2.512 billion worth of shares changed bands yesterday with practically half of transactions credited to broadcast giant ABS-CBN’s Philippine Deposit Receipts (PDRs).

Two blocks of 12,775 million PDRs each were separately crossed by Jardine Fleming Exchange and PCCI Securities and Brokers Corp. at P41.50 or P1 lower than its unit price the other day.

The sales represented the disposal of 25.5 million ABS-CBN PDRs by parent firm Benpres Holdings to an undisclosed financial investor to gain an equivalent 3.27-percent ownership of the flagship media unit of the Lopez family.

"This transaction is in line with the Company’s stance in taking precautionary measures for debt servicing at the Benpres level and in recognition of the uncertain state of the economy today," Benpres corporate information officer Catherine Lopez-Uy told the Philippine Stock Exchange.

ABS-CBN PDRs were issued through ABS-CBN Holdings Corp, a 50-50 owned corporate vehicle between Benpres and Lopez Inc., last Oct. 7, 1999 as an instrument to raise additional capital from foreign investors by giving them indirect ownership in ABS-CBN. Each PDR grants the holders, upon payment of the exercise price and subject to certain other conditions, to delivery of one ABS-CBN share.

Last Wednesday, about P2.7 billion worth of ABS-CBN shares were crossed mainly as part of the conversion from PDRs to common shares, although there were also speculations of the buy-in of PLDT into the company as part of the two parties’ merger talks.

PLDT, the second most active stock with 13.4 percent of aggregate deals, steadied at P845.

Other index stocks which closed higher were San Miguel B, Ayala Land, Meralco B, SM Prime and Metrobank.