Alpina Holdings debuts on Catalist at S$0.32, 3.2% above IPO price

SINGAPORE-BASED contractor Alpina Holdings made its trading debut on the Singapore Exchange's Catalist board on Friday (Jan 28), 3.2 per cent or S$0.01 above its initial public offering (IPO) price of S$0.31. It later closed at S$0.32.

This gives the company a market capitalisation of S$59 million and an implied price-to-earnings ratio of 11.7 times. The company posted a net profit of S$5 million for the year ended Dec 31, 2020. The theoretical earnings per share would be 2.7 Singapore cents per share with the number of shares issued.

The integrated building services provider was one of the most actively traded shares by volume, with 3.7 million shares worth S$1.2 million changing hands as at 9.22 am.

In a bourse filing on Thursday, Alpina announced that 37 million placement shares offered were fully subscribed.

Notable subscribers of the shares include former minister for National Development Mah Bow Tan and former Tanjong Pagar Constituency Member of Parliament Chong Weng Chiew.

Alpina Holdings said that it would use S$3 million of its net proceeds from the IPO to expand its existing business in the integrated building services (IBS), mechanical and electrical (M&E) engineering services, and alteration and addition works.

Another S$2.5 million in net proceeds will go towards strengthening and accelerating the extension of the company's integrated facilities management (IFM) services.

Project director Louis Low said that the company has observed that IBS contracts are evolving into IFM works, which cover associated services such as cleaning and landscaping, on top of other building and M&E maintenance works.

Therefore, the company aims to expand its existing service offerings, potentially through acquisitions of other companies, to become a 1-stop hub for IFM needs.

The company was founded by executive chairman and chief executive officer Low Siong Yong as well as executive director Tai Yoon On in 2003.

Notably, 99 per cent of the company's projects between 2018 and the first half of 2021 were contracted by the Singapore government or a public university.

READ MORE:

• Alpina Holdings' IPO aims to raise S$8.1m to grow its integrated facilities management offerings
• Alpina IPO fully subscribed; Mah Bow Tan among substantial shareholders