1. Cebu Landmasters [CLI 2.55, up 0.0%; 68% avgVol] [link] signed a joint venture agreement with a subsidiary of the Japanese company called NTT Urban Development (NTT UD) to develop a “premium grade” residential tower in Cebu. CLI said that the parties were preparing documents for PCC clearance of the new joint venture company that will be called CLI NUD Ventures. No other details on the size of the tower or the development schedule were released.
MB quick take: Japanese developers have shown interest in developing here for years, but it can be very difficult to get past the tire-kicking stage and actually start a project, so this is a project that I’ll be watching closely. NTT UD develops residential towers under its “Wellith” brand of lifestyle condos. Interested to see if NTT UD is looking to grow its Wellith brand internationally.
2. DITO CME [DITO 1.99, up 0.5%; 69% avgVol] [link] was halted briefly to allow the investing public to digest DITO’s disclosure on the issuance of 1.59 billion common shares to Summit Telco Corporation (Summit), an “unrelated third party subscriber”. DITO described Summit as an “investment company”, with this purchase of DITO shares as Summit’s “first business venture since incorporation.” DITO reported that no Summit financials were available.
MB quick take: Nothing weird at all about the publicly-listed holding company of our third-largest telco issuing a huge chunk of shares to a company with no operational history or public profile of any kind. I look forward to whatever it is that Summit plans to bring to the table. Probably the same brand of silent leadership that Loden Infra Technologies brought in 2021.
3. Citicore Renewable Energy Corp. (CREC) [link] confirmed plans to conduct an IPO next year. CREC said that it is already preparing the registration statement, and that it plans to file that statement “within the year” and to conduct an IPO “by next year” if “market conditions are conducive.” CREC is the parent company of Citicore Energy REIT [CREIT 2.53, up 0.4%; 55% avgVol].
MB quick take: While I was disappointed when CREC backed away from its rumored plans for a Q2 listing this year, I don’t think you’ll find any PSE traders who are actually surprised by the delay. The market has been weak. CREC will need capital to realize its ambitious plans to roll out five gigawatts of solar projects before 2028, but perhaps it has the luxury of not needing a huge infusion of cash right at this moment, so it has the ability to wait for a better entry point.
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