RFM pulls off stock offering worth P1.62B

Food and beverage group RFM Corp. successfully raised P1.62 billion in fresh funds from the sale of equity via private placement.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange on Friday, RFM said several stockholders agreed to sell 340 million shares at P4.77 apiece. This block represented about 10.7 percent of the company’s outstanding stocks at present, thereby widening the company’s public float, apart from generating cash proceeds.

In an interview, RFM vice president and head of corporate planning Ramon Lopez said the transaction was a “top-up” placement where controlling shareholders from the Concepcion family initially lent some shares for a quick equity deal. The same shareholders, however, will buy back later the same amount of shares for the same price.

“So it will become a primary issuance. The proceeds will go to the company,” Lopez said. “This is because investors are requesting us to increase stock trading liquidity.”

The funds generated from the offering would be used “for possible acquisitions in the future,” Lopez said.

Earlier in the year, Lopez announced that RFM had paid part of its debt in line with its which strategy to boost the company’s balance sheet.

Based on Friday’s disclosure, the selling shareholders were Horizons Realty Inc., BJS Development Corp., Triple Eight Holdings Inc. and RPMC Resources Inc. They are expected to subscribe to the same amount of shares to replace the ones they lent within 90 days, the disclosure said.

The private placement was executed by RFM through stock brokerage Maybank ATR Kim Eng Securities Inc. Doris C. Dumlao