Directors increase stakes in Aspial Lifestyle, Raffles Medical, Centurion, among others

OVER the five sessions through to Thursday’s (May 21) close, 23 primary-listed companies conducted buybacks with a total consideration of S$183 million.

Singtel led the buyback tally, with 25.5 million shares at an average price of S$4.76, purchased under the S$2 billion value realisation share buy-back programme on Thursday. 

Over the five sessions, 120 director interests and substantial shareholdings were filed for around 50 primary-listed stocks. Directors or CEOs reported 16 acquisitions and five disposals, while substantial shareholders recorded 10 acquisitions and three disposals.

This included CEO or director acquisitions filed for Asian Pay Television Trust , A-Sonic Aerospace , Aspial Lifestyle , Centurion Corporation , Ho Bee Land , Hyphens Pharma International , Megachem , Mermaid Maritime , Nera Telecommunications and XMH Holdings .

Aspial Lifestyle: Chairman adds to stake on retail and lending growth

Aspial Lifestyle non-executive chairman, Koh Wee Seng, increased his direct stake in the group, acquiring 2,108,300 shares between Monday and Thursday at an average price of about S$0.419 apiece.

This lifted his direct interest from 9.94 to 10.06 per cent, with his total interest increasing from 80.78 to 80.87 per cent.

Aspial has launched an equity fundraising to raise gross proceeds of about S$84.8 million, comprising a private placement and preferential offering priced at S$0.402 a share. This represents a discount of about 8.1 per cent to the prevailing volume-weighted average price.

The transactions come amid continued earnings growth, with FY2025 revenue rising 41.3 per cent to S$830.1 million and profit before tax reaching S$102.5 million, supported by strong performance across its retail, pawnbroking and secured lending segments.

Retail remains the group’s core driver, contributing 87.5 per cent of revenue, while pawnbroking and secured lending continue to benefit from expanding pledge books and portfolio growth.

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Buybacks, insider activity and capital moves

Momentum into 2026 has also strengthened, with expected revenue of about S$247 million and profit before tax of S$40 million for Q1 FY2026, representing year-on-year growth of 48 per cent and 140 per cent, respectively, supported by sustained demand across its portfolio and continued expansion in Malaysia.

Aspial is evaluating capital-raising initiatives to position for growth opportunities in the pawnbroking and secured lending segments and to enhance capital structure flexibility, while maintaining a cautious stance given macroeconomic and commodity volatility.

Raffles Medical: Chairman increases stake, maintains focus on China expansion and capital management

Dr Loo Choon Yong, chairman of Raffles Medical Group , increased his direct stake, acquiring 522,000 shares at S$0.95 apiece on Monday. This lifted his direct interest to 252,445,223 shares, with his total interest now representing 56.31 per cent of the group. 

Management continues to focus on growth drivers through expansion in China across Beijing, Shanghai and Chongqing, addressing domestic patient demand.

The group maintains a disciplined approach, focusing on defined service segments, cost management and partnerships with leading public hospitals to support patient volumes and service uptake.

Capital management also remains a key focus, with a FY2025 final dividend of S$0.03 a share representing about 84 per cent of sustainable earnings, alongside ongoing share buybacks. 

Centurion: Director increases stake amid strong occupancy and rental growth

Centurion’s non-executive director and joint chairman Han Seng Juan increased his direct stake in the group, purchasing 247,800 shares at S$1.46 apiece on Monday. This lifted his direct interest to 15.36 per cent; his total interest now represents 44.36 per cent of the group.

The increase comes alongside continued operating momentum, with Q1 FY2026 revenue rising 30 per cent year on year to S$89.4 million, supported by high occupancies and rental reversions across its purpose-built worker and student accommodation assets.

The group continues to scale its living sector platform, with about S$3 billion in assets under management across 81,388 beds in five countries, supported by income streams from owned assets, management services and Centurion Accommodation Reit-related income.

Ho Bee Land: Deemed interest edges higher amid portfolio repositioning

On Wednesday, Ho Bee Land executive chairman Chua Thian Poh’s deemed interest increased after market purchases of 50,000 shares by his spouse and another 93,600 shares by Ho Bee Holdings, for a combined 143,600 shares at about S$2.03 apiece.

After these transactions, his deemed interest increased from 75.72 to 75.74 per cent.

At Ho Bee Land’s recent annual general meeting, management highlighted ongoing portfolio repositioning initiatives, including plans to redevelop 1 St Martin’s Le Grand and enhancement work at 67 Lombard Street.

The group also reiterated its approach to balancing reinvestment, debt reduction and shareholder returns, with a general dividend payout range of 20 to 50 per cent of profit excluding non-cash items, alongside a final dividend of S$0.05 a share for FY2025.

XMH: Director continues to add to stake amid healthy order book

XMH chairman and managing director Tan Tin Yeow increased his stake in the group, buying 119,100 shares across transactions on May 15 and Monday at about S$2.27 apiece, lifting his interest from 66.05 to 66.16 per cent.

Tan founded the group’s distribution arm and secured its exclusive distributorships. He continues to oversee strategy, corporate planning and business development.

XMH’s revenue for its first half ended Oct 31, 2025, rose 40.5 per cent year on year to S$94 million; profit after tax increased 23 per cent to S$15.5 million, driven by growth across all segments.

Since the results were posted, Tan has increased his interest from 64.18 per cent. The group also noted that a healthy order book continues to provide visibility into H2 FY2026.

Hyphens Pharma: Chairman adds to stake on continued earnings and margin improvement

Executive chairman and CEO Lim See Wah increased his stake in Hyphens Pharma International, buying 280,000 shares across transactions on Monday and Tuesday at an average price of about S$0.322 a share. This lifted his total interest from 47.90 to 47.99 per cent.

Lim holds his deemed interest through Inomed Holding, reinforcing his position as the controlling shareholder.

The acquisitions follow improved financial performance in FY2025, with the group delivering higher gross profit and achieving its highest gross profit margin to date, supported by product-mix optimisation and growth in its pharmaceutical and medical aesthetics segment. 

Management has outlined a continued focus on expanding proprietary brands, strengthening its core pharmaceutical platform and improving operational efficiency, with growth supported in Singapore and regional markets.

A‑Sonic Aerospace: CEO increases stake

A-Sonic Aerospace CEO Janet LC Tan increased her direct stake in the group through open-market purchases of 175,000 shares at a weighted average price of about S$0.581 apiece between May 12 and 15.

This lifted her direct interest to 66,338,000 shares, representing 65.87 per cent of the group. The increase consolidates her majority stake alongside ongoing share buybacks by A-Sonic.

Management continues to focus on operational efficiency, digitalisation and strategic partnerships to enhance resilience and long-term growth, following a 15.6 per cent year-on-year increase in FY2025 profit before tax to US$4.204 million.

TOTM placement to fund AI expansion

TOTM Technologies announced on Monday a proposed placement of up to 220.5 million new shares at S$0.025 each, raising gross proceeds of about S$5.5 million. SAC Capital is the placement agent with Maybank Securities the sub-placement agent.

The new shares represent 14.5 per cent of the existing share base and 12.7 per cent post-enlargement, implying measured dilution with no transfer of control. 

The placement is being undertaken primarily to expand the group’s business in emerging technology sectors, including funding for its TOTM.AI initiative, while also providing capital for acquisitions, investments and joint ventures.

Management has said that existing resources are sufficient for current needs, which positions the raise as being growth-oriented.

Proceeds will be deployed mainly towards technology expansion, with the balance allocated to working capital, supporting the group’s transition into artificial intelligence, blockchain and digital infrastructure capabilities while maintaining operational flexibility. 

Bank of America crosses 5% in AEM via prime brokerage positioning

A filing on Tuesday showed that Bank of America, through its wholly owned subsidiary NB Holdings Corporation, increased its deemed interest in AEM Holdings from 4.73 to 5.31 per cent after a change on May 15.

The increase of 1,843,198 shares reflects positioning through prime brokerage activities, where Merrill Lynch International and BofA Securities retain rights to rehypothecate client shares, alongside a small disposal of 23,400 shares held in principal capacity.

The interest remains fully deemed with no direct holding at the parent level and is aggregated across wholly owned subsidiaries, including BofAML Jersey Holdings and Merrill Lynch International.

The writer is the market strategist at Singapore Exchange (SGX). To read SGX’s market research reports, visit sgx.com/research.