D.M. Wenceslao and Associates Inc., a 53-year-old property developer and construction firm, said on Wednesday it will again try to become a listed company, more than two years after it decided to suspend its plan to become public.
The company said it has again filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) applications in connection with its planned initial public offering (IPO) to raise as much as P15.5 billion.
In a statement, the company said it will offer up to 679.2 million shares, or about 20 percent of the company’s total issued shares.
Proceeds will be mainly used to further expand its real-estate development footprint through a mix of commercial and residential projects in Aseana City.
“The planned offering remains subject to the requisite regulatory approvals and market conditions,” it said.
In November 2015 the company already secured approval from the SEC for its IPO, and planned to raise as much as P17.5 billion, one of the biggest listing at the PSE. Weeks later, however, the company announced it will defer its IPO.
The company is the master developer and primary owner of Aseana City, one of the largest and fastest-growing mixed-use business districts in the Manila Bay area.
Based on the company’s financial statements, around 50 percent of its revenues are recurring from the leasing of office and commercial space and land rentals.
The company has managed to double its net income from P871 million in 2015 to P1.56 billion in 2017, with net income ratio of 52 percent, based on the company’s filings.
The company has mandated BPI Capital and Maybank as the joint global coordinators and bookrunners for the IPO.
The company was incorporated in 1965 and is in the business of construction and acting as specialty construction contractors. It already completed more than 100 land reclamation and construction projects and was able to build three commercial buildings in Aseana City.
Prior to its restructuring activities, it was 88.6 percent owned by Wendel Holdings Inc., a company owned by the Wenceslao family and in the business of raising investments through borrowings or sale of lease of capital assets.
The late Engr. Delfin M. Wenceslao Sr. organized the company as an individual proprietorship in 1960. It was then incorporated in 1965 and is currently licensed by the Philippine Licensing Board as Category “AAA” with classification as general engineering and general building.
“In a span of more than 40 years, the company has remained competitive and is expanding to further improve the quality and distinction of its services. It has further enhanced its specialization to other businesses, such as land banking, real-estate development, land development and mass housing,” the company said.