Sam Goi adds to Envictus and JB Foods stakes

FOR the five trading sessions that spanned Mar 10 to Mar 16, the Straits Times Index declined 1.8 per cent with the Hang Seng Index declining 3.9 per cent and the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI declining 3.7 per cent.

Institutions were net sellers of Singapore stocks over the five sessions with S$107 million of net outflow. UOB : U11 0%, DBS : D05 0%, Yangzijiang Shipbuilding (Holdings) : BS6 0%, Keppel Corporation : BN4 0% and City Developments : C09 0%led the net institutional outflow for the five sessions.

Meanwhile, Sembcorp Industries : U96 0%, Wilmar International : F34 0%, Sembcorp Marine : S51 0%, Genting Singapore : G13 0% and OCBC : O39 0% led the net institutional inflow for the five sessions.

There were 23 primary-listed companies conducting share buybacks over the five trading sessions through to Mar 16, with a total consideration of S$23.5 million, more than doubling the preceding week’s consideration of S$10.6 million.

Sembcorp Industries also led the buyback consideration tally for the five sessions, buying more than two million shares at an average price of S$3.95 per share.

OCBC again bought back 400,000 shares over the five sessions, with the average price paid at S$12.19 per share for the five sessions through to Mar 16, versus the S$12.59 per share paid for the preceding five sessions.

GET BT IN YOUR INBOX DAILY

Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox.

Sign UpVIEW ALL

The five trading sessions saw more than 100 changes to director interests and substantial shareholdings filed for close to 40 primary-listed stocks.

This included 20 company director acquisitions with no disposals filed, while substantial shareholders filed nine acquisitions and three disposals.

On Mar 10, Wilmar International : F34 0% chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) Kuok Khoon Hong increased his deemed interest in the company. HPRY Holdings, in which Kuok has a deemed interest, acquired one million shares at an average price of S$3.93 per share.

Kuok maintains a 13.19 per cent total interest in Wilmar International and is overall in charge of the management of the group with a particular focus on new business developments.

He has gradually increased his total interest in Wilmar International from 12.94 per cent in October 2022.

The group operates an integrated agribusiness model that encompasses the entire value chain of the agricultural commodity business, from cultivation and milling of palm oil and sugarcane, to processing, branding, and distribution of a wide range of edible food products in consumer, medium and bulk packaging, animal feeds and industrial agri-products.

Between Mar 9 and Mar 10, CSE Global : 544 0% executive director, group managing director and CEO Lim Boon Kheng acquired 864,600 shares at an average price of S$0.345 per share.

With a consideration of S$298,287, this increased his total interest in the company from 2.57 per cent to 2.71 per cent.

Lim was first appointed as executive director in August 2013. He joined CSE Global in 1999 as the group financial controller. Prior to that, he began his career in 1990 as an accountant with ULC Systems (FE).

He then joined Singapore Technologies in 1991 as an accountant and was promoted to various positions in the organisation. He is concurrently the managing director of CSE Global (Asia).

On Feb 27, CSE Global reported its FY22 (ended Dec 31) revenue increased 19.0 per cent from FY21, mainly attributable to growth in infrastructure project revenues.

The group maintained a healthy order book of S$480.1 million as at Dec 31, 2022, lifted by new orders for the infrastructure sector recording 131.2 per cent year-on-year growth.

Lim noted FY22 saw CSE Global’s diversification strategy pay off through the year-on-year growth in revenue and orders, with the group successfully completing its rights issue with the support of its shareholders, as well as the acquisition of Logic Wireless and Radio One Group, which will further strengthen its offerings in the radio communications solutions space.

On Mar 13, Hong Lai Huat Group : CTO 0% deputy chairman and CEO Ong Bee Huat acquired four million shares at an average price of S$0.066 per share. With a consideration of S$264,000 the married deal increased his total interest in the real estate and property developer from 41.37 per cent to 42.14 per cent.

Ong is the founder of the group and responsible for overall strategic direction and planning as well as business development.

On Feb 28, the group reported a loss of S$10.4 million in FY22 (ended Dec 31) as compared to net profit of S$3.5 million in FY21.

As relayed back on Feb 17, the loss was largely attributed to non-cash items such as the partial write off for its cassava biological assets, certain non-operational fixed asset, impairment losses on an old equipment sale in Cambodia, and minimal losses incurred towards the operation in Cambodia due to lower sale of its property units in a challenging FY22.

The group added on Feb 28 that its second mixed-use project Royal Platinum’s construction will have its topping out ceremony in mid-March 2023, which will mark a significant step in completing the entire project, as per the scheduled timeline.

The group added that with the opening of international borders, it remains optimistic and will work closely with its stakeholders on the sale of its property units in FY23.

The group also highlighted it will concurrently work on launching the fourth mixed-use project in Sihanoukville, in which the group has a minority interest, before H123 and it plans to diversify its income stream in FY23 by converting and refurbishing the property units in the D’Seaview project for serviced apartment rental purposes.

Between Mar 10 and Mar 15, Envictus International Holdings : BQD 0% non-executive director and vice-chairman Sam Goi Seng Hui increased his total interest in the company from 21.33 per cent to 21.43 per cent.

He acquired 305,400 shares for a consideration of S$46,077 at an average price of S$0.151 per share.

Goi was first appointed to his current board role in January 2013. He is the executive chairman of Tee Yih Jia Group, and SGX Mainboard-listed GSH Corporation : BDX 0%, PSC Corporation and Tat Seng Packaging Group : T12 0%.

The self-made entrepreneur has diverse business interests in Singapore, China, Malaysia, the United States, and other parts of the world

Envictus International Holdings is a food and beverage group with a portfolio of businesses and brands operating under its key business divisions.

For its FY22 (ended Sep 30), the group’s overall revenue rose significantly by RM 133.5 million (S$39.9 million), or 34.9 per cent, to RM 515.6 million, with growth mainly driven by an improved performance from all four of its business divisions – food services, trading and frozen food, food processing and dairies division – enabled by the reopening of the Malaysia economy.

On Mar 14, Goi also acquired 41,400 shares of JB Foods : BEW 0% at S$0.52 per share. With a consideration of S$21,528, the acquisition increased his total interest in the company from 24.48 per cent to 24.50 per cent.

Goi has been the non-independent, non-executive director and vice-chairman of JB Foods since March 2013.

JB Foods is a major cocoa ingredients producer with operations spanning the Asia-Pacific (China, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore), Europe, North America and West Africa, and a cocoa bean processing capacity of 180,000 tonnes per year.

On Feb 27, JB Foods announced its group revenue for FY22 (ended Dec 31) increased 13.6 per cent to US$509.6 million from FY21, fuelled by growth in demand for cocoa ingredients, which saw a marked increase in the higher shipment volume.

The group added that its ability to mitigate the supply chain disruption challenges had contributed to the group’s profitability for FY22, with profit after tax growing 20.5 per cent from FY21, to US$16.7 million.

Between Mar 10 and Mar 15, A-Sonic Aerospace : BTJ 0% CEO Janet LC Tan acquired 31,300 shares for a consideration of S$16,456 at an average price of S$0.526 per share.

This took her direct interest in the company from 61.46 per cent to 61.48 per cent. Tan has gradually increased her total interest in A-Sonic Aerospace from 53.35 per cent at the end of 2018.

With over 20 years of extensive experience in the aviation industry, Tan is also the promoter founder of A-Sonic Aerospace.

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

*Amendment note: An earlier version of the story had the company’s name as Hanwell. However, it has since been changed to PSC Corporation. The article has been revised to reflect this.