Publicly listed companies will soon have their levels of public ownership disclosed by the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE), the bourse said.

In a memorandum released Monday, the PSE said that it would start displaying the "free float" levels on its website. "The free float level is the percentage of a company's outstanding shares that are not held by 'strategic shareholders,'" it said.

"The shift to the use of free float levels is a technical improvement meant to provide the public better and more up-to-date information on the public ownership levels of listed companies, particularly when companies undertake certain corporate actions," said PSE corporate services division head Enrico Trinidad.

The public disclosure of listed companies' free float levels will begin on April 24, he said.

At present, the PSE website carries data that show the number of "float shares" a company has, although the data sometimes fail to capture recent adjustments in the holdings of strategic shareholders.

Shifting to a percentage-based figure?while regularly updating the exact level of a company's free-floating shares?will help give investors a clearer picture of whether a particular stock is widely held or closely controlled.

This will also help investors discern whether a stock's price is moving sharply because of actions made by a broad investor base or simply by a few shareholders. With editing by INQUIRER.net