Vietnamese companies are estimated to issue an additional 3.7 billion shares for capital hike plans, equal to 16.5% of total outstanding shares on local exchanges at end-August, resulting in a 19% price dilution through the year end, said Saigon Securities Inc. (SSI), the largest broker for foreign investors in the country.
Listed firms on the two national stock exchanges completed issues of 1.04 billion shares for bonus giving and dividend payout as of August 31, meeting 81% of the full-year targets, SSI Research’s Director Hoang Viet Phuong said in a latest report.
For capital hike, they raised VND9.32 trillion from share sales and VND1.93 trillion from convertible bond offerings in the first eight month, compared to the full-year plans of VND19.38 trillion and VND7.71 trillion, respectively.
Total of VND22.769 trillion in corporate bonds was also sold during the period, the report said.
These firms, which absorbed VND6.87 trillion from existing shareholders, will need to mobilize VND5.92 trillion from them in the four remaining months.
"If shareholders refuse to buy additional shares, they face a risk of dilution as share prices will be lowered in proportion to the value of the issue," Hoang Viet Phuong wrote in a statement.
These figures don’t include the plans of firms on the over-the-counter market and initial public offerings (IPOs). PetroVietnam Gas expects to raise US$150 million from an IPO early next month.
Seven listed banks, meanwhile, have projected to raise VND17 trillion from additional share offerings and VND1.5 trillion from convertible bonds. 23 unlisted small banks also need at least VND32.45 trillion for capital hike.
In the first half, foreign inflows to Vietnam shares reached US$1.8 billion, which was expected to help ease the capital thirst by local firms, Phuong said.
At end-August, Vietnam had 580 listed companies with a combined market capitalization of VND700 trillion, accounting for 40% of the country’s GDP versus 18% by end-2008.
(Securities Investment)
Vietnamese
