LT Group P30-B share sale enjoying brisk demand from foreign investors

MANILA, Philippines - The roughly P30-billion overseas share sale of tycoon Lucio Tan’s flagship holding firm is enjoying robust demand from foreign investors.

LT Group Inc.’s international equity offering is one of the largest by a Philippine company.

“It just started but take-up is very robust,” a source with deep knowledge on the transaction said.

The transaction will end late next week, the source added.

On Monday, LT Group launched its overseas follow-on offering, which aims to sell as much as 1.6 billion shares priced at P18 to P20.50 each.

At the range that has yet to be finalized, LT Group stands to raise P28.8 billion to P32.8 billion by selling as much as 1.6 billion existing shares to foreign investors.

The share sale is one of the largest by a local firm. In May 2011, diversified conglomerate San Miguel Corp. raised $850 million from convertible bonds and equity offering.

GT Capital Holdings Inc. of banking tycoon George Ty and property giant Ayala Land Inc. generated P14.3 billion and P12.2 billion, respectively, from overnight equity placements in the first quarter.

In January, LT Group president Michael G. Tan said the overseas equity offering will be finalized in April.

The board of directors approved last August the company’s plan to raise fresh capital via an international equity offering involving as much as three billion shares held by its controlling shareholder Tangent Holdings Corp.

LT Group earlier said it is raising fresh capital to beef up the group’s arsenal as it prepares for the next wave of growth of its banking, tobacco, liquor, property and airline businesses.

Earlier, UBS Investments Philippines Inc. was hired as the financial adviser and sole bookrunner for the share sale.

LT Group said its net income climbed 29 percent to P7.51 billion last year from P5.82 billion a year ago.

Consolidated profits grew 31 percent to P8.74 billion despite revenues slipping 6.48 percent to P30.57 billion from P32.69 billion, LT Group said.

LT Group serves as the umbrella company for Tan’s various businesses including Asia Brewery Inc., Fortune Tobacco Corp., Eton Properties Philippines Inc. and Philippine National Bank.

The consolidation program last year aligned all of Tan’s assets under one roof, allowing the group to leverage emerging opportunities in different sectors and provide better realization of value for investors.