Ayala raises P2.21B from treasury share sale

Zobel family-led Ayala Corp. has raised P2.21 billion from the sale of treasury common shares while preparing for its P15-billion preferred share offering as the local bourse charged into the bull territory.

In a stock exchange filing on Thursday, the country’s oldest conglomerate said it had completed its sale of 3.07 million treasury common shares for P720 each.

Treasury shares are those that a company previously bought back from the market. These can be sold back to the public to raise capital or pull up a stock’s price.

“The proceeds from the sale will be used for general corporate purposes,” Ayala said in its disclosure.

Separately, the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) announced in a notice that it had approved Ayala’s application to reissue up to 7.5 million treasury shares as preferred shares.

These will be sold at P2,000 per share, with a base amount of P10 billion and an oversubscription option of up to P5 billion in case of excess demand.

The offer period will run from Oct. 1-7, with the tentative listing date on Oct. 15.

Preferred shares are typically more attractive for investors, as holders of these stocks are prioritized during dividend payouts. Unlike common shares, however, preferred shares give no voting rights to shareholders.

Ayala’s share sale comes after the local bourse entered the bull territory, meaning the benchmark stocks index has increased by at least 20 percent from its recent low.

More optimism

Analysts have said that this signaled more optimism from the market, especially after the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas eased its monetary policies.

Earnings of Ayala in the first half of the year surged 18 percent to P24.3 billion, buoyed by robust growth across its businesses, particularly Bank of the Philippine Islands.

Including onetime gains, the company’s net income swelled by 21 percent to P22.3 billion.

Ayala earlier announced plans to increase its capital spending this year by 14 percent to P284 billion as its core businesses intensified expansion plans.

Ayala Land Inc., the group’s property arm, earmarked P100 billion in capital expenditures this year, up from P86.2 billion previously as it ramped up launches in its premier brands.

Listed energy platform ACEN Corp., meanwhile, plans to spend P72 billion, up from P40 billion, to bankroll new renewable energy projects locally and abroad.