JG Summit jacks up stake in PLDT

Gokongwei-led conglomerate JG Summit Holdings Inc. has made an additional investment of $138.8 million in telecom giant PLDT Inc., beefing up its stake in the telco by 3.26 percentage to 11.23 percent.

“For JG Summit, this is a valuable investment since PLDT Inc. has historically paid good dividends,” the conglomerate told the Philippine Stock Exchange on Tuesday.

The conglomerate acquired about 7.047 million additional common shares of PLDT at $19.70 per share through the purchase and conversion of American depositary receipts (ADRs) of PLDT.

A depositary receipt is a negotiable certificate issued by a bank representing shares in a foreign company traded on a local stock exchange. PLDT’s ADRs are listed on the New York Stock Exchange.

JG Summit said the acquisition of the common shares of PLDT Inc. would not have any adverse effect on its financial condition.

The Gokongwei group has long been interested in PLDT. As early as 2000s, it attempted to acquire the First Pacific group’s stake in both PLDT and property developer Bonifacio Land Co. but this did not succeed.

It gained a foothold in PLDT in 2011 when JG Summit swapped its 51.55 percent stake in Digital Telecommunications Philippines Inc. for a stake in PLDT. This made the Gokongwei group a key partner of businessman Manuel V. Pangilinan.

The purchase of additional shares suggests the Gokongwei group’s confidence in PLDT.

JG Summit’s 11.23-percent stake in PLDT is now valued at P24.46 billion out of the company’s market capitalization of P217.78 billion.

In 2013, the partnership with Pangilinan’s group was deepened when JG Summit bought out San Miguel Corp.’s stake in Manila Electric Co., which is led by Metro Pacific Investments Corp.