Manchester International raises public ownership to 11.84%

A general shot of the Philippine Stock Exchange in Makati. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — Manchester International Holdings Unlimited Corp. (MIH), the local backdoor listing vehicle of the Melco casino group of Macau, has boosted its public ownership to 11.84 percent, eliminating risks of trading suspension.

MIH, in a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange on Friday, said a substantial stockholder had sold shares in the company, thereby complying with the 10-percent minimum public float required to remain listed on the PSE. Prior to this transaction, MIH had a public float of only 6.79 percent.

MIH complied with the requirement ahead of the Melco group’s tender offer to minority shareholders in early 2013. Melco, through its local holding firms, will make a tender offer at about P3.15 per share for MIH’s class A (open only to local investors) and at about P3.55 for its class B (open to both local and foreign investors) shares.

The tender offer period will run from Jan. 11 to Feb. 11 next year.  Minority stockholders who will tender their shares will be paid in cash and in full on settlement date targeted by Feb. 18. The tender offer agent is ATR Kim Eng Securities.

Melco is a developer and owner of integrated resort facilities focused on the Macau market. Its “City of Dreams” complex is a highly successful project that houses a gaming facility, an upscale retail operation, restaurants and bars, and hotels such as Crown Hotel, Grand Hyatt Hotel and Hard Rock Hotel. The complex is also known for “The House of Dancing Water” show.

The Macau casino group—which is co-owned by Lawrence Ho Yau Lung, son of casino mogul Stanley Ho Hung Sun and Australian billionaire James Packer—is building its second integrated resort in Macau called “Studio City.” The group sees its experience in developing world-class integrated resorts such as the City of Dreams in Macau to allow it to take advantage of the anticipated growth in the leisure and tourism industries in the Philippines.