CDL starts buyback exercise by paying S$2.85m for 300,000 shares

CITY Developments Ltd (CDL) has made the first purchases on the open market in its inaugural share buyback exercise.

It picked up 300,000 shares on Thursday, or 0.033 per cent of its issued share capital, at an average price of S$9.485 a share, paying more than S$2.85 million altogether.

The price marked a discount of 14.8 per cent to the net asset value of S$11.13 a share as at June 30, CDL noted in an after-market announcement on the Singapore Exchange website.

"The purchased shares will be held as treasury shares and a portion of it may be deployed for the  company's long-term incentive plans," it said.

The developer added that the buyback was in line with a share purchase mandate that was renewed at the annual general meeting on April 25, with the company authorised to buy back up to 90.93 million of its shares.

Group chief executive Sherman Kwek said in the media statement: "There is deep value in our shares and we have confidence in CDL's strong fundamentals and future growth potential. We have repositioned our business for the next lap, with a focus on growth, enhancement and transformation.

"Our robust balance sheet enables us to initiate our share buyback exercise to enhance returns for shareholders. We will continue to seek investments for CDL, capitalising on both internal and external opportunities."

The lowest price that CDL paid on the market was S$9.44, while the most that it forked out was S$9.54.

The counter closed down by S$0.01, or 0.11 per cent, to S$9.54.

CDL has lost 23.6 per cent in the year to date.