IMI pushes through with follow-on offer

MANILA, Philippines - Integrated Micro-Electronics Inc. (IMI), the electronics manufacturing unit of the Ayala conglomerate, will finally push through with its long-delayed follow-on offering this year.

“It should happen this year. It has already been moved and moved so I think this will happen this year,” said John Eric Francia, managing director of Ayala Corp.

IMI’s board already approved the issuance and public offering of up to 215 common shares with an over-allotment option for 85 million shares at an offer price of P10 each.

The Ayala-led firm plans to raise up to P3 billion from its proposed sale of common shares through the follow-on offering.

Francia said this would increase the company’s public float to 15 percent from its current float of about 10 percent with the offering.

IMI was supposed to conduct a public offering a year after its listing by way of introduction at the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) in 2010. The follow-on offering was a post-listing requirement of the PSE.

In April this year, the company was able to secure the regulator’s approval to postpone its public share sale for another year as it waits for the right market timing.

Since listing by way of introduction in 2010, IMI has been penalized for failing to sell shares beyond the leeway.

“You can only delay so much but now, there’s more clarity on the strategy of IMI and things have gotten much better. IMI is again now on an investment mode,” Francia said.

He said proceeds from the offering would be used primarily for expansion of IMI’s operations, plant augmentation, and increase in plant capacity.

IMI, a provider of electronics manufacturing services (EMS) and power semiconductor assembly and tests services, currently has factories in the Philippines, Mexico, Bulgaria, Germany, China, Japan and France.