Villar firm gains in stock market debut

AllHome Corp., billionaire Manuel Villar Jr.’s “one-stop shop” for home furnishings, appliances and construction goods, gained during its trading debut on Thursday.

AllHome, which listed under the ticker code “HOME,” ended the session higher by 0.52 percent to P11.56 over its initial public offering price of P11.50 per share.

It gained as much a 1 percent during the session and, for brief moments, slipped into the red, losing as much as 0.7 percent intraday.

“For a first day, it’s OK. I’m very happy,” Villar, whose net worth was estimated at $6.6 billion by Forbes Magazine, told reporters after the company listed its shares.

AllHome raised about P14.9 billion in the country’s largest IPO in three years after Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp. raised P19.5 billion in 2016.

AllHome posted net proceeds of P8.2 billion from the sale of primary shares, more than half of which would be used to repay debts. It said P3.56 billion would be used to expand its store network through 2020.

AllHome ended July 2019 with 27 stores and a total net selling space of 215,994 square meters across 22 cities and municipalities. For the second half, it plans to open 20 more stores, mainly in mega Manila, a territory that includes Metro Manila and nearby provinces.

“There is still a large potential market,” said AllHome vice chair Camille Villar, who is also the daughter of Manuel Villar.

She said AllHome also benefited from customers of the Villar family’s flagship property firm Vista Land & Lifescapes Inc. via special packages for homeowners.

Meanwhile, the elder Villar on Friday said he was bullish on the Philippine economy and might decide to list more retail companies in the next three years.

AllHome is part of AllValue, the Villar group’s holding company for investments in retail businesses such as AllDay supermarket, AllDay convenience store and Coffee Project, a chain of cafés.

“We have other companies that are ready to list but we’re still studying the environment if it’s OK to list,” Villar said. “There are three to four possible candidates.”

The gain on Thursday came as the benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index rose 1.09 percent despite worries on the health global economy, amplified by a bruising trade war between the United States and China.

AllHome is the third company to list this year after Axelum Resources Corp. and Kepwealth Property Phils Inc. At least three more companies are expected to go public before the end of the year, including Metro Pacific Hospital Holdings Inc.