As family feud erupts, Lopez stocks lose ground

MANILA, Philippines — As the Lopez family feud erupts, share prices of some Lopez-led companies listed in the Philippine Stock Exchange fell yesterday.

“This is shaping up to be an intense boardroom battle that could affect the strategic direction of the Lopez empire, especially with respect to ABS-CBN,” China Bank Capital Corp. managing director Juan Paolo Colet said.

“For now, the dispute appears confined at the highest level, so I don’t expect any immediate adverse impact on the operations of the various listed companies,” he said.

However, Colet said that a delay in the proposed capital infusion into ABS-CBN could alter the turnaround plans of the media company.

Share price of listed holding firm Lopez Holdings Corp. fell by 2.93 percent to P3.65 apiece yesterday, while that of First Gen Corp., the largest clean and renewable independent power producer in the Philippines, dropped by 1.9 percent to P17.58 per share.

ABS-CBN Corp. shares also plunged by 4.53 percent to P3.58.

Meanwhile, shares of First Philippine Holdings Corp., whose principal activities consist of investments in real and personal properties, managed to inch up by 0.21 percent to P73.20 apiece, while that of property developer Rockwell Land Corp. improved by 0.56 percent to P1.80.

“I think the bulk of the price action movement in the stock market, including Lopez stocks, was a result of the overall sell-off in equities, stemming from the growing concern over the US-Israel-Iran conflict,” Luis Limlingan of Regina Capital said.

Tycoon Federico “Piki” Lopez serves as chairman of Lopez Holdings, First Philippine Holdings and First Gen. He also serves as vice chairman of Rockwell Land and a director of ABS-CBN.

Piki has filed a complaint before the Mandaluyong City Regional Trial Court against his cousins in their capacities as the directors of Lopez Inc., which serves as the ultimate parent firm of all the Lopez Group of companies that include Lopez Holdings, First Philippine Holdings, First Gen and Energy Development Corp.

The respondents in the case include Eugenio “Gabby” Lopez III, Rafael Lopez, Miguel Ernesto Lopez, Martin Lopez and Maria Eugenia Brown.

Piki is seeking his reinstatement as president of Lopez Inc., claiming that his ouster during a Feb. 27, 2026 board meeting was illegal.

Piki’s removal as Lopez Inc. president was allegedly due to his refusal to infuse P2 billion in reserve funds from Lopez Inc. as fresh capital for the ailing ABS-CBN.

Piki and his brother Benjamin Lopez, as members of Lopez Inc.’s board, reportedly voted against the use of the reserve funds of their holding company for ABS-CBN, because of what they considered “unresolved audit findings” at ABS-CBN.

Particularly problematic is the proposed use of the requested infusion for payouts to certain executives, instead of using the money to reverse ABS-CBN’s mounting losses.

Members of ABS-CBN Corp.’s board of directors, excluding Piki, have already distanced the media company from the family feud, saying that the firm is not a party to an ongoing case involving a dispute within the Lopez clan.

However, they said the claim of unresolved audit findings is unfounded, while the claim that the proposed capital infusion could go to payouts for certain executives is equally baseless.