San Miguel Pure Foods raises public float, avoids delisting

MANILA, Philippines – San Miguel Pure Foods Co. (SMPFC) has now met the local exchange’s minimum public ownership requirement following a recent share sale, avoiding the threat of being delisted from the market.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE), parent San Miguel Corp. said it completed the sale of 25 million common shares of the unit to the public at P240 apiece, raising P6 billion on November 23.

The sale brought SMPFC’s public ownership from a measly 0.08% to 15.8% of its outstanding common shares, above the PSE’s 10% minimum requirement.

San Miguel, which sold the shares at a steep discount, said it will use offer proceeds for general corporate purposes.

Market liquidity

As part of reforms it is implementing, the PSE gave non-compliant firms until the end of 2012 to meet the public float rule or else, they will be suspended and eventually, delisted.

The move is aimed at bolstering investors’ liquidity or the ease of going in and out of the market.

Apart from this, it is also meant to appease the main tax bureau which threatened to impose higher taxes on listed companies that are closely held.

Other San Miguel units — the brewery and property firms — have yet to comply with the public float rule.

Another San Miguel-controlled company, legacy airline owner PAL Holdings, previously announced it will voluntarily delist its shares. – Rappler.com