Jardine Matheson buys back shares; Soon Hock’s Tan Yeow Khoon builds stake

[SINGAPORE] For the five trading sessions spanning Jan 16 to 22, institutions were net buyers of Singapore stocks, with net institutional inflow of S$1.7 million, taking the net inflow for the month to S$272.7 million.

Stocks that saw the highest net institutional inflow over the five sessions included OCBC , CapitaLand Investment , UOB , UOL Group , Singtel , City Developments Ltd (CDL), Keppel , Wilmar International , Venture Corp and Sats .

OCBC booked the highest net institutional inflow this year, followed by CapitaLand Investment and CDL.

Meanwhile, DBS , Yangzijiang Shipbuilding , Seatrium , CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust , Singapore Exchange (SGX), Keppel DC Real Estate Investment Trust (Reit), Sembcorp Industries , Keppel Reit , Yangzijiang Financial and Frasers Centrepoint Trust led the net institutional outflow.

Stocks that booked the highest net retail inflow in the year to Jan 22 include DBS, Singtel and Sembcorp.

Share buybacks

Over the five sessions, 17 primary-listed companies conducted buybacks with a total consideration of S$15.4 million.

UOB led the consideration tally with 189,000 shares acquired at an average price of S$36.85 each, while First Resources led the tally for non-STI stocks. Secondary-listed Hongkong Land also bought back 535,000 shares at an average price of US$8.26 apiece.

Director transactions

Over the five sessions, more than 80 director interests and substantial shareholdings were filed. Across more than 40 primary-listed stocks, directors or chief executive officers reported 10 acquisitions and two disposals, while substantial shareholders recorded three acquisitions and six disposals.

Jardine Matheson Holdings

Between Jan 16 and 22, Jardine Matheson Holdings bought back 270,300 shares at an average price of US$74.57 apiece.

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On Nov 3, Jardine Matheson announced that up to US$250 million would be returned to shareholders through a share buyback programme. All shares repurchased will be cancelled, effectively reducing the company’s share capital.

This is consistent with the group’s broader capital allocation strategy and ongoing commitment to enhancing shareholder value. It expects the buyback to be completed during 2026.

Through to Jan 22, the company bought back 619,300 shares at an average price of US$68.83 each, with a consideration of US$42.6 million. It is expected to report its FY2025 results in March.

In November, Jardine Matheson highlighted that it had continued to de-lever the company’s parent balance sheet and, following receipt and payment of dividends, had net debt of US$25 million at the end of October. Lincoln Pan also became CEO on Dec 1, succeeding John Witt.

JEP Holdings

Between Jan 16 and 22, JEP Holdings executive chairman and CEO Andy Luong acquired 273,100 shares at an average price of S$0.29 per share. This took his total interest in the Catalist-listed provider of precision machining and engineering services from 79.66 per cent to 79.72 per cent.

PSC Corp

On Jan 20, PSC Corp executive chairman Sam Goi acquired 339,800 shares at S$0.385 apiece. This increased his direct interest from 83.38 per cent to 83.44 per cent. His preceding acquisition was on Dec 18, with 1,401,600 shares acquired at S$0.375 per share.

In September, the mandatory conditional cash offer by UOB-Kay Hian, on behalf of Goi, for all PSC shares closed with 39.56 per cent valid acceptances, bringing his aggregate holdings to 82.94 per cent. When the offer was made, it was noted that there was no intention to actively pursue the delisting of PSC Corp.

In August, PSC said that it was maintaining discipline with a strong balance sheet and net cash position. It noted that it was leveraging its brand portfolio while managing competition and cost pressures through marketing investments, product expansion, cost controls and efficiency gains across its consumer goods and packaging businesses.

It is expected to report its FY2025 results by end-February.

Soon Hock

Between Jan 16 and 19, Soon Hock executive chairman Tan Yeow Khoon acquired 3,682,300 shares at S$0.635 apiece, lifting his total interest from 72.74 per cent to 73.93 per cent. He also made acquisitions in December and November.

Tan has more than five decades of experience in logistics and transportation, having led Cogent and delivered major projects such as The Grandstand and Singapore’s largest integrated logistics hub. He has also developed boutique hotels and restored heritage properties through significant modernisation efforts.

Soon Hock Enterprise Holding made its SGX mainboard debut in October, raising S$48.1 million at S$0.58 per share. The initial offering received indications of interest and application monies of approximately S$122.6 million, and was 9.8 times subscribed.

The leading industrial property developer and investor in Singapore maintains a project portfolio exceeding S$1 billion in gross development value. It said its user-centric approach and forward-looking design philosophy help drive strong tenant retention, lower vacancy risk and long-term capital appreciation.

In its prospectus, the group noted that its developments are designed to maximise user experience, with wide driveways and ramps, column-free or minimal-column layouts, strategically placed loading and unloading bays, flexible and efficient use of space, and the use of environmentally friendly materials where feasible.

Soon Hock’s outlook, as outlined in its prospectus, reflects the group’s intention to strengthen both its development and recurring-income engines, creating a more balanced earnings profile over time.

The group highlighted that its upcoming projects were substantially funded, with early-stage sales at Stellar@Tampines already providing strong visibility into future cash flows. Skye@Tuas is expected to be financed through a mix of internal resources and external facilities, consistent with the group’s stated approach for its pipeline.

Together with new income-generating assets, such as the one located in Jalan Papan, these elements form the foundation of a more resilient operating model, it said.

Furthermore, as reported in The Business Times on Jan 14, Maybank Securities initiated coverage on Soon Hock with a target price of S$0.75, citing strong visible earnings from its development pipeline and a strengthening manufacturing sector.

Analyst Toh Xuan Hao expects core net profit to rise from S$3.3 million in FY2024 to S$34.3 million in FY2025 (ended Dec 31) and S$47.2 million in FY2026, driven by project completions and steady sales momentum.

Toh also noted that the dividend yield could reach 6.2 per cent in FY2026, as management has proposed a 25 per cent payout ratio for FY2025 and FY2026. The report also detailed the group’s healthy pipeline, led by Stellar@Tampines, where 71 per cent of units have been pre-sold, giving strong visibility on cash flows.

Maybank Securities noted long-term support from Singapore’s shift into higher-value manufacturing, which is expected to lift demand for specialised industrial space. It said that downside risks include dependence on the Republic’s industrial property market, exposure to debt financing and interest rate volatility, and potential difficulties in collecting progress payments.

In December, UOB-Kay Hian initiated a “buy” call with a target price of S$0.68, while Beansprout published non-rated research. All three reports are freely available in the SGX research and education section under the SGX Group website’s stock-exchange tab.

Mooreast Holdings

On Jan 19, Mooreast Holdings non-executive non-independent director Alvin Chew acquired three million shares at S$0.12 apiece. The married deal was his first acquisition since he was appointed to the board in December.

Chew is also the managing director and head of direct investments at YZJ Asset Management.

In December, Mooreast signed a memorandum of understanding with Norway’s GMC to explore joint opportunities in floating offshore wind and oil and gas across Norway and the wider North Sea, including collaboration on anchoring, mooring and engineering solutions tailored to the Norwegian offshore market.

Mooreast is expected to report its FY2025 results by end-February. It delivered a strong turnaround in the first half of FY2025 (ended Jun 30), posting a net profit of S$3.5 million after recording a S$1.3 million loss a year earlier. Its revenue jumped 84 per cent to S$25.2 million on the back of a significantly stronger performance from its mooring division.

Gross profit more than doubled to S$10.9 million, outpacing revenue growth, while operating activities generated S$5.3 million in net cash inflow compared with a S$600,000 outflow in H1 FY2024. Cash and bank balances rose to S$18.5 million as at end-June, up from S$16.2 million as at Dec 31, 2024.

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