Liberty Flour Mills’ property arm eyeing to go public

Flour manufacturer Liberty Flour Mills Inc. (LFM) has taken one step forward to bring its real estate investment holding firm to public hands, a move that will unlock values from its leasing portfolio following the declaration of shares in this unit as property dividends.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange on Friday, LFM said it had recently filed a registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission in relation to a previously disclosed property dividend declaration involving shares of subsidiary LFM Properties Corp. (LPC).

Late last year, LFM announced a property dividend consisting of shares of stock of LPC with an entitlement ratio of 69 LPC common shares for every LFM common share.

This means the shareholders of LFM will become shareholders of LPC. About 49.98 percent of LFM’s shares are held by the public.

Following the property dividend declaration, LPC will be eligible to list on the local stock exchange by way of introduction. LFM itself is engaged in the business of manufacturing flour, utilization of its by-products and the distribution and sales of its produce. It became a public company in 1966.

Its subsidiary LPC, incorporated in 1995, is in the business of leasing office space and condominium units.

To date, about 19 percent of LFM’s revenues are derived from the leasing of property assets.

Among LPC’s assets is a 19-story building in Salcedo Village, Makati City, which is fully leased out to local and foreign corporations, foreign embassies and consulates.

LPC, likewise, owns a 17-story building in the same area and two residential condominium units.

It also owns a 2,100-square meter property in Ortigas Center. LFM, a report showed, was looking to develop a two-story structure on this site. INQ