Metrobank prices rights offer at P73.50

LOCAL banking giant Metropolitan Bank & Trust Co. has firmed up the terms of its P32-billion stock rights offering, a capital-raising exercise meant to fund medium-term expansion plans.

Based on the offering circular posted by the Philippine Stock Exchange on Tuesday, Metrobank has priced the rights offering at P73.50 per share, which was computed based on the volume-weighted average price of the bank’s common shares for each of the 10 consecutive trading days immediately prior to the pricing date, subject to a discount of 21.75 percent.

The bank plans to sell as much as 435.37 million new common shares to existing shareholders at a rights entitlement ratio of one share for every 6.3045 common shares held as of record date March 18, 2015.

The offering period will run from March 23 to 27 while tentative listing date is set on April 7, 2015.

This sale of new shares to existing investors will allow the bank to bring its tier 1 or core capital adequacy ratio to risk assets 13 percent even while expanding lending activities.

The bank has mandated J.P. Morgan and UBS as joint global coordinators, joint international lead managers and joint book runners for this offering. First Metro Investment Corp. is sole domestic lead manager and joint book runner while HSBC is co-manager.

For this year, Metrobank sees net profit reaching P20 billion, matching last year’s level, on the back of sustained growth in core earnings. Metrobank expects net interest income to rise to P55.2 billion or about a fifth higher than the level last year.