PNB Capital and Investment Corporation noted that Philippine Stock Exchange’s approval of the P2 billion initial public offering (IPO) of Medilines Distributors Inc. (Medilines) comes at a time when the economy and the stock market are on the rebound.
“We look forward to offering to investors this trailblazing deal that will allow them to partake in the country’s growing healthcare industry”, said PNB Capital President and CEO Gerry Valenciano.
PNB Research expects the Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) to finish at 7,490 to 8,100 this year on expectation that the relatively low yield environment will allow earnings multiples to remain elevated.
This suggests a potential upside of up to 11.1 percent from last Friday’s close of 7,289.61.
“GDP growth starting the 2nd quarter of 2022 will encourage positive sentiment and investors are looking forward to less strict pandemic curbs overall,” said Philippine National Bank Vice President and Head of Research Alvin Arogo.
PNB Capital is the sole issue manager, lead underwriter and sole bookrunner for the transaction.
Medilines Chairman Virgilio B. Villar hopes that investors will not pass on this great opportunity to invest in the healthcare industry, especially in the time of this COVID-19 pandemic.
“We are now one step closer to our vision of providing the public an investment opportunity that is set to rapidly grow amidst the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond as everyone realizes the importance of the healthcare industry”, said Villar.
Medilines is a leading distributor of medical equipment in the country. It maintains a portfolio of best-in-class equipment from multinational brands such as Siemens Healthineers (Germany) for diagnostic imaging, B. Braun (Germany) for dialysis, and Varian (USA) for cancer therapy.
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has approved Medilines’ IPO in its pre-effective letter dated October 12. The PSE also gave its greenlight through its notice of approval dated October 18, subject to compliance with certain conditions.
Based on a preliminary prospectus dated October 8, 2021, Medilines will be offering up to 550 million primary common shares and up to 275 million secondary shares at an offer price of up to P2.45 per share.
Medilines intends to finalize its offer price on November 16, 2021. The target offer period for the IPO will be from November 22 to November 26, 2021 while the target IPO listing date is on December 7, 2021.
The net proceeds from the IPO is expected to amount to roughly P1.28 billion, which it will use to fund the company’s working capital for its existing products, expand into the medical consumables segment, and to repay its debt.
Founded in 2002, Medilines plans to expand its presence and product portfolio in the near future to help enhance the country’s healthcare system through quality medical devices.
During the pandemic, Medilines provided some of the necessary medical equipment to boost the country’s response to COVID-19 through diagnostic imaging devices such as CT scans and x-rays, which are critical in allowing doctors to determine the extent of COVID-19 infection in patients.
Medilines’ revenues for the first semester of 2021 jumped to P815 million which is higher by 281 percent year-on-year. Net income during the same period in 2021 was at P100 million which is equivalent to almost 100 percent of the net income posted for full-year 2020.
The Company attributes the profitability growth to the increase in sales of cancer therapy machines during the first semester of 2021.