MANILA, Philippines — Medilines Distributors Inc., the medical equipment distributor of the brother of tycoon Manuel Villar Jr., has filed for a P2-billion initial public offering.
Medilines, which is chaired by Virgilio Villar, plans to sell 825,000,000 common shares at a price of up to P2.45 apiece, filing documents released by the Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday showed.
At least 70% of these shares will be offered to institutional investors.
Based on the timeline submitted to the SEC, the offer period will happen from November 11 to 17 this year. On its stock market debut, which is set on November 25, Medilines will be listed as “MD” on the main board of the Philippine Stock Exchange.
Medilines is hoping to raise P1.9 billion in net proceeds from the maiden share sale of both primary and secondary shares. The company will use P541.5 million of new capital from the primary shares offer for product expansion, which it said will include medical consumables ranging from surgical masks to catheters.
The remaining P743.1 million will be used to pay for its debts with two banks. The loans carry interest rates of 4.5% to 5.25% and were used for “working capital requirements”.
The company will not receive any proceeds from the sale of secondary shares.
Medilines was among the businesses that caught the rare pandemic tailwinds. In the first half of the year, the company’s net income grew by almost 100% year-on-year to P102 million.
The two-decade old company is one of the leading medical equipment distributors in the country, with the Department of Health as one of its biggest clients. It mainly specializes in diagnostic imaging, dialysis, and cancer therapy with brand offerings such as Siemens and B. Braun.
“Our growth momentum was boosted further by the increase in the demand for life-saving equipment amid the COVID-19 pandemic,” the company said.