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LOCAL investors flocked to buy a piece of Davao-based
Phoenix Petroleum Philippines Inc., which sold shares of the public
for the first time on Friday.
Dennis Uy, Phoenix president,
said the initial public offering (IPO) was five times
oversubscribed. The company priced its shares at P9.80 apiece,
within the approved offer price range of P6.80 and P11.30.
“For a company targeting
50-percent income growth in the next two years, [it is considered a]
good value priced at single digit price-to-earnings, which is also
half of the market multiple,” Eduardo Francisco, BDO Capital and
Investment Corp. president, said.
BDO Capital is the domestic
underwriter of the IPO, which involves the sale of 25 percent of
Phoenix, or up to 36.25 million new and existing common shares. Out
of the total, 29 million primary shares would be sold while its
existing shareholders would give up their 7.25 million shareholdings
in the company.
The company expects to raise P176
million to P327 million from the maiden offering, and has earmarked
P97 million for gasoline stations and equipment expenditures and
P257.5 million for depot and logistics facilities expansion.
Earlier, the company disclosed
that it expects to earn a net income of P144 million and with
additional 30 new outlets by the end of the year expects to have 250
stations in the next five years.
Phoenix also said that it is
negotiating with Cebu Pacific for the exclusive rights to supply
fuel to its airplanes in Mindanao. Presently, Phoenix is the
exclusive logistics provider for Cebu Pacific as it is
“strategically located” to handle the airline’s requirements.
 --Likha
Cuevas-Miel
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