Robinsons Retail pegs IPO price at P58/share

MANILA, Philippines - The multi-format retail arm of the Gokongwei family has finalized the selling price for its initial public offering (IPO) that would raise $650 million in fresh capital.

Robinsons Retail Holdings Inc. pegged its IPO price at P58 per share after the company’s bookbuilding process and international roadshows.

“Robinsons Retail priced its $650 million IPO at P58 per share with a market cap of P80.3 billion,” said Lauro C. Baja III, managing director of underwriter UBS Investments Philippines Inc.

The final price is at the low end of the P55-P66 guidance, said below the previous maximum price of P86.64 per share.

The Philippines’ second largest multi-format retailer will sell 484.75 million shares, including the over-allotment option of 22.85 million shares, from Oct. 29 to Nov. 5. Robinsons Retail’s shares will be listed at the local bourse on Nov. 11.

“The international tranche was 4.5 times oversubscribed with world-class investors,” Baja said.

A total of 135 investors joined the bookbuilding, with 58 percent coming from Asia, 21 percent from Europe and 21 percent from the US, he said.

In terms of investor class, Baja said long-term investors accounted for 67 percent while hedge and private banks took the remaining 33 percent.

The IPO will be facilitated by joint global coordinators and international lead managers UBS, Deutsche Bank and J.P. Morgan, and domestic lead underwriter Maybank ATR KimEng Capital Partners Inc.  UBS leads the Southeast Asia equity capital markets bookrunner ranking with a 15-percent market share year-to-date, followed by Credit Suisse at 9.7 percent and CIMB Group at 6.8 percent.

Robinsons Retail aims to end 2014 with 1,400 stores across all formats. As of end-September, the company had 982 stores, which will increase to 1,036 by end-2013.

The company is banking on the continued growth in the economy and the increasing disposable income of the middle class.

As of end-June, the company had 75 Robinsons Supermarkets, 36 Department Stores, 114 Handyman, True Value and Howards do-it-yourself stores, 345 Mini Stop convenience stores, 223 South Star drug stores and 147 specialty stores.

Robinsons Retail will also venture into home furniture, sporting goods, school and office supply, and coffee shops.

Aside from retail, the Gokongwei family is also into budget airline (Cebu Pacific), banking (Robinsons Bank Corp.), property (Robinsons Land), petrochemicals (JG Summit Petrochemicals Corp.), and snacks and beverage (Universal Robina Corp.).