Exec says delisting best option for Eton

MANILA, Philippines—Eton Properties Philippines sees delisting as the best option for stockholders for now in lieu of selling new shares to meet a 10-percent minimum public float requirement but a stock market comeback may be possible in two to three years, according to officer-in-charge Michael Tan.

Eton’s parent company Tanduay Holdings Inc., soon to be named LT Group Inc., on the other hand, intends to comply with the minimum public ownership requirement set by the Philippine Stock Exchange. Nevertheless, Tanduay has asked the PSE for a grace period, or until March 2013, to beef up its public ownership, which will fall below the minimum requirement after the consolidation into the company of core businesses under the Lucio Tan group.

For Eton, Tan said the delisting option was for now the more “open, more transparent” to minority shareholders. The pricing of a tender offer to minority shareholders has yet to be announced pending the release of a fairness opinion report from KPMG.

“If we delist voluntarily, it’s easier to relist later on and also we give minority shareholders the opportunity to sell their shares,” Tan said, noting that hefty capital gains taxes of 5-10 percent would henceforth be imposed on listed companies that did not comply with the public float requirement.

During the Eton stockholders’ meeting on Thursday, some minority shareholders urged Eton to reconsider delisting plans, but Tan said that as current stock market prices did not reflect the full value of Eton, selling new equity was not a good option at present.