PSE to suspend trading of 7 listed firms on Jan. 2

The Philippine Stock Exchange is all set to suspend starting Jan. 2 the trading of the shares of seven listed companies that failed to comply with the 10-percent minimum public ownership requirement.

Ten companies failed to comply with the minimum public float required for continuing listing, but the trading on three issues had been earlier suspended for other reasons.

In a PSE memorandum, the companies that will be suspended from the local bourse starting Jan. 2—and their respective public ownership levels—are Alphaland Corp. (8.03 percent), Southeast Asian Cement Holdings Inc. (2.41 percent), PAL Holdings (2.3 percent), Allied Banking Corp. (1.51 percent), San Miguel Brewery (0.61 percent), PNOC Exploration Corp. (0.21 percent) and San Miguel Properties Inc. (0.06 percent).

The three companies subjected to earlier trading suspension orders are Philcomsat Holdings Corp., Cosmos Bottling Corp. and Nextstage Inc.

In a memorandum, PSE president Hans Sicat said the PSE would impose a trading suspension on the shares of non-compliant listed companies beginning Jan. 2, 2013, for a maximum of six months, or until June 30, 2013.

“If after June 30, 2013, a listed company remains non-compliant, the listed company’s shares shall be delisted effective July 1, 2013,” Sicat said.

During the last working week of 2012, 12 companies were still non-compliant, but two of them—  Maybank ATR KimEng Financial Corp. and Manchester International—completed last-minute equity deals to boost their public ownership and avoid trading suspension.

The PSE’s  minimum public ownership requirement of 10 percent for continuing listing aims to provide a “fair and efficient facility for price discovery and to ensure that sufficient liquidity exists in the stock market.”

Once suspended, trades on these companies can only be done over the counter and these transactions will consequently bear a more painful taxation.

The Bureau of Internal Revenue, as contained in its recent rule issuance relating to the minimum public ownership rules, will impose capital gains tax and documentary stamp tax on every sale, barter, exchange or other disposition of shares of listed companies that do not comply with the public float requirement.

Specifically, capital gains tax equivalent to 5 percent of the net capital gains amounting to not over P100,000 will apply, while a 10 percent capital gains tax will apply on the excess. Also, DST of P0.75 on each two hundred pesos P200 of the par value of the stock will also be applied on the sale.

In contrast, trading of shares listed and traded at the PSE are subject only to stock transaction tax equivalent to 0.50 percent of the transaction value levied on the seller.

Both the PSE and the Securities and Exchange Commission have rejected appeals to extend the Dec. 31 grace period given to non-compliant companies to meet the public ownership requirement.