The scheduled initial public offering (IPO) of Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp. on November 10 may happen earlier than expected depending on its market conditions, the company’s underwriter said.
“We’re fine tuning the schedule. That’s not 100 percent final yet. Early November is generally the schedule we were targeting but due to where we see the market is moving, there is the possibility that we may make some adjustments,” BPI Capital Corp. managing director Eric Luchangco said.
The underwriter added that they might move the IPO to an earlier date, however, it’s still undecided as they are still waiting for their regulatory approval on the P29.7 billion IPO.
Shell is hoping to do their IPO earlier than the November schedule, just before their company chairman Ed Chua retires in October. The company is set to offer 330 million shares with an overallotment of 30 million, P90 per share, data from the Securities and Exchange Commission shows.
An analyst from A&A securities said that Shell’s IPO is one of the most awaited listings in the market.
“This will be welcomed as it is a long-awaited listing of one of the Big Three. Just top off the mind, at P90 per share, the numbers of Shell should really be very impressive given that it’s listed competition is still struggling to pass the P12 mark. In terms of the Philippine business, Petron, I think leads Shell in market share…But of course Shell has added services and businesses markets – international as well as exploration so this should put more premium on the price,” Justino Calaycay said.
Shell’s IPO said that proceeds from the sale of the primary offer shares is about P2.7 billion and will be used to fund expenditures and other requirements.
At least 10 percent of the common stock of three years of oil companies is required to be listed under the Oil Deregulation Act of 1998, but Shell delayed their public offering due to the 1997 Asian financial crisis.
Various reasons were filed by Shell to delay their IPO, like their refinery shut down in 2003, reassessment of its barrel options in 2013, and a slump of oil prices in 2014.
In 2015, Shell posted a net income of P3.6 billion from sales volume growth, lower inventory losses and improvement of refining margins.