Monde Nissin, Emperador boot out Bloomberry, RRHI in PSEi rejig

Ramon Monzon —CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

Consumer powerhouse Monde Nissin Corp. will debut on the closely-tracked Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) while liquor-maker Emperador Inc. is making a swift comeback effective Feb. 14.

These two companies will replace integrated casino operator Bloomberry Resorts Corp. and Gokongwei-led Robinsons Retail Holdings Inc. (RRHI), based on the January to December 2021 stock performance review of the PSE.

“The index review allows us to maintain a roster of companies that best represents the entire market. The last two reviews saw the entry of newly listed companies in the PSEi as large issuances readily meet our criteria and are deemed qualified for inclusion by other index providers,” PSE president and CEO Ramon Monzon said in a press statement on Friday.

The entry of Monde Nissin has been widely anticipated by the stock market for months. Since listing on the stock exchange on June 1 last year, it has consistently been actively traded in the market. It is now valued by the stock market at P287.5 billion with share prices appreciating by around 19 percent since going public.

Defying downturn

Meanwhile, the return of Emperador—which was stricken off the main index in August last year—also did not come as a surprise to some investors. It was among the few index stocks that defied the general earnings downturn since the COVID-19 pandemic erupted in 2020. It is now valued by the stock market at P377.67 billion.

After its removal from the PSEi last year, the multinational liquor-maker announced plans for dual listing on the Singapore Stock Exchange (SGX) to boost its visibility in the global capital market. It is planing to pursue secondary listing by way of introduction, or sans immediate public offering, on the main board of SGX “as soon as practicable.”

To qualify for the PSEi, a listed company must be among the top companies in terms of liquidity and market capitalization. It should also have a free float level of at least 15 percent of its outstanding shares.

Relevant financial criteria as well as eligibility for early inclusion are also considered by the PSE in the index review.

Last year, the PSE introduced to its twice-a-year index review a new rule providing for the early inclusion of companies that could comply with specific size and liquidity criteria. A company may be included in the PSEi if it ranks 25th or higher in terms of full market capitalization. Conversely, it will be excluded if it ranks 36th or lower.

Changes in subindices

Like Monde Nissin, Converge ICT was included in the PSEi last year even if it was only a public company for less than 12 months.Except for the financials index, all other sector indices will also have changes in their composition.

EEI Corp. and Monde Nissin will be added to the industrials index while Alsons Consolidated Resources Inc. and SFA Semicon Philippines Corp. will be removed.

The A and B shares of ATN Holdings Inc. will be taken out of the holdings index and the A and B shares of Metro Alliance Holdings & Equities Corp. will be dropped from the services index. Oriental Peninsula Resources Group will be removed from the mining and oil index.

On the other hand, AREIT Inc., Philippine Estates Corp. and Primex Corp. will become part of the property index while A Brown Company Inc. will cease to be a constituent of said index.