Manila: The producer of Philippines' best-selling instant noodle brand Lucky Me! is selling 3.6 billion shares, it said in a letter to the local stock exchange. Monde Nissin has set a final price of 13.50 pesos per share on offer. That's lower than the 17.50 pesos maximum price indicated in its IPO filing.
Still, at 48.6 billion pesos ($1 billion), Monde Nissin's offering will be the biggest on record in the country. Del Monte Philippines Inc., another food company best known for its pineapple products, last month filed for an IPO that could raise as much as 38.3 billion pesos. (SM Investments Corp.'s 28.8 billion-peso IPO in 2005 was the biggest so far.)
It is not uncommon for Philippine IPOs to price below the maximum indicated level. Monde Nissin's shares are expected to begin trading on June 7, according to an earlier prospectus.
Second of the year
Philippines, which has seen DDMP REIT Inc. raise 13.4 billion pesos in the only stock listing so far this year, has another large deal in the pipeline. National Grid Corp. of the Philippines has picked banks to work on an IPO to raise at least $1.5 billion, Bloomberg reported in March.
Monde Nissin makes crackers, muffins and biscuits, and has a presence in more than 30 countries, according to its website. In 2015, the Makati-based firm acquired British meat substitute maker Quorn Foods Ltd. for 550 million pounds ($764 million).
Monde Nissin plans to use the IPO proceeds for purposes including loan repayment and general corporate use, according to an earlier filing.
