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Thursday, August 18, 2011

Sheng Siong Lists on SGX, Gains on Trading Debut

Singapore Exchange (SGX) Wednesday welcomed the listing of Sheng Siong Group Ltd on the Mainboard under the ticker symbol ‘OV8’.

One of the largest supermarket retailers in Singapore, Sheng Siong has 23 stores across the island. To support its retail operations, it has an extensive distribution network, food-processing facilities, and warehousing facilities.

In a statement on Wednesday, the group said its Singapore IPO raised net proceeds of approximately S$62.6 million, which will be used to fund the expansion of its grocery retail business, repay its term loan, and for working capital purposes.

“This IPO offers an opportunity for investors to participate in the stable growth story of the Singapore retail industry,” Lim Hock Chee, Chief Executive Officer of Sheng Siong, said.

Anchor investors in Sheng Siong’s IPO include JF Asset Management, Prudential Asset Management (Singapore), FIL Investment Management (Hong Kong), VPL Funds and Kenrich Partners.

Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation is the issue manager, underwriter and placement agent for the IPO.

With a market capitalisation of S$442.5 million, Sheng Siong brings the total number of consumer goods and services companies listed on SGX to 121.

The group began trading at 9 am Wednesday on SGX’s Mainboard, with a debut opening price of S$0.32.

Sheng Siong said it was the second-most actively traded stock Wednesday in terms of share volume, while gaining 3 per cent from its IPO price of S$0.33 to close at S$0.34 on 92.3 million shares.

The group also said it plans to distribute up to 90 per cent of net profit to shareholders for the financial years ending 31 December 2011 and 31 December 2012.

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