MANILA, Philippines — Upson International Corp., the country’s largest retailer of computers and IT equipment, launched its P1.65 billion IPO on Tuesday.
The operator of mall stores like Octagon Computer Superstore, Micro Valley and Gadget King said in its final prospectus that the offer period will run from March 21 to March 27.
It plans to make its trading debut on the Philippine Stock Exchange on April 3 under the symbol “UPSON”.
The company, one of the companies delaying its 2022 IPOs due to volatile market conditions, had previously valued the offering at 2.40 pesos per share, lower than the previous indicative maximum bid price of 5.50 pesos per share.
It also reduced the number of offering shares by 30 percent.
Based on the final prospectus, the company said it would use all the Ptas 1.5 billion IPO proceeds to expand its store network from 2023 to 2027.
Upson previously planned to raise up to 4.32 billion pesos for the same cause and for general expenses, which includes funds for store inventory.
In its final outlook, Upson also maintained a goal of more than doubling its network by opening an additional 250 stores or an additional 25,000 square feet of retail space by 2027. As of September last year, the company had 200 stores.
“Expansion can and may be funded through other sources of funding such as internally generated funds and/or borrowing,” Upson said in the prospectus.
It also plans to build nine new warehouses and distribution facilities which will be located in Manila, Cabanatuan, Dagupan, Naga, Iloilo, Bacolod, General Santos, Zamboanga and Palawan.
Upson had secured locations in Cabanatuan, Naga, Dagupan and Manila, the prospectus showed.
The IPO also includes the sale of up to 62.5 million shares, valued at P150 million, owned by company chairman Lawrence Lee. This would also be used for price stabilization activities during the post-IPO period.
The company was founded by entrepreneurs Ricardo Lee and William Lim when personal computers became an accessible consumer product in the 1990s.
Upson sells up to 22 percent of its stock to the public. It will have a market value of P7.5 billion based on the IPO price.
The company reported net profit up over 68 percent to P400.23 million for the first nine months of 2022, while revenue grew over 10 percent to P7.03 billion.
First Metro Investment Corp. acted as issue manager and bookrunner for the transaction. RCBC Capital Corp. will act as joint lead underwriter. to join.
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As wild swings shake the stock market, the computer trader downsizes the IPO
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