Maynilad Water Services, Inc. (Maynilad) successfully raised P34.3-billion from its initial public offering (IPO), bolstering its funding for long-term expansion plans.
In a briefing before the bell ringing ceremony at the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE), Maynilad president and CEO Ramoncito Fernandez said the IPO is a fulfillment of their legislative franchise.
Maynilad is a concessionaire of the government-owned Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS), and services the West Zone of the National Capital Region (NCR) and some parts of the province of Cavite.
“We believe that Maynilad has very strong fundamentals and a long-term value proposition. We believe that Maynilad is a solid investment delivering essential water services and with very predictable cash flows,” Fernandez said.
The company issued 1.66 billion primary common shares to the public and over 24.90 million primary common shares to First Pacific Company Ltd., from the IPO.
Price per share is P15, lower than the P20 when the IPO started.
Fernandez said the P15 “is an appropriate price,” adding “the up to P20 per share pricing is a requirement when you submit your prospectus.”
“That was actually determined to give us much flexibility over price discovery. We believe that P15 per share, at least for the IPO itself, is an appropriate price,” he said.
The bulk of the allocation, at around 53.6 percent, are accounted for by investors from Asia, followed by local investors, 29.6 percent; Europe, 14.7 percent; and the United States, 1 percent.
The company attracted 12 cornerstone investors, both foreign and local, led by the International Finance Corp. (IFC) and Manila-based Asian Development Bank (ADB).
Fernandez said ADB and IFC’s investments provided credibility and strong interest to the public offering.
“And the conclusion is that they can provide value to Maynilad. And Maynilad is a vehicle that they can implement their development plans, their sustainability plans for Asia and even for the Philippines,” he added.
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