BY S. PUSPADEVI
When contacted, Advancecon group chief executive officer Datuk Phum Ang Kia said it was unable to give a new date for the prospectus launch at this juncture, pending queries from the SC. “Our plan to list the company is still ongoing,” Phum said.
PETALING JAYA: Main Market-bound Advancecon Holdings Bhd has postponed the prospectus launch of its initial public offering (IPO) because of outstanding queries from the Securities Commission (SC).
The Kuala Lumpur-based earthworks and civil engineering services specialist, which was supposed to launch its prospectus yesterday, has not given a new date.
When contacted, Advancecon group chief executive officer Datuk Phum Ang Kia said it was unable to give a new date for the prospectus launch at this juncture, pending queries from the SC.
“RHB Investment Bank Bhd, our principal adviser, underwriter and placement agent for Advancecon’s IPO exercise, will advise us on the next launch date.
“Our plan to list the company is still ongoing,” Phum said in an email reply.
Advancecon received the SC’s nod for its proposed listing on March 27 and planned for a listing by June this year.
Set up on April 9, 1997, Advancecon was previously known as Advance Earthworks Sdn Bhd. It changed its name to Advancecon Holdings Sdn Bhd on Sept 23, 2010 and became a public limited company on Aug 23, 2016.
Based on its draft prospectus, the company plans to list 90 million new shares or 22.4% of its enlarged issued share capital and paid-up share capital.
There will also be an offer for sale of existing shares, where 33 million shares will be allocated for private placement to identified bumiputra investors approved by the International Trade and Industry Ministry.
Advancecon has undertaken jobs for various township developments such as Setia EcoHill, Setia Eco Gardens, Eco Majestic and Tropicana Aman.
It was involved in works for the trumpet interchange and EcoHill link at the Kajang Selatan Toll Plaza of the Kajang-Seremban Highway.
Apart from earthworks and civil engineering services, Advancecon also provides support services such as the sale of construction materials, the hiring of machinery and ad-hoc general construction services. It diversified into property investment in 2013.
Backed by an experienced management team, the company said in its draft prospectus that it owned a sizeable fleet of machinery and equipment to support its business operations.
It also laid out its future plans and strategies, which include becoming the leading earthworks and civil engineering services contractor in the country, and further expanding its capabilities in the earthworks and civil engineering services market.
For the financial year ended Dec 31, 2015 (FY15), Advancecon reported a 39.8% hike in net profit to RM29.94mil from RM21.41mil in FY14 on the back of a 32.3% jump in revenue to RM264.31mil from RM199.81mil the previous year.
It registered over 70% growth in net profit between FY13 and FY15.
About 52.4% of its IPO proceeds will be used for capital expenditure, while 22% will go towards repaying borrowings, 18.9% for working capital and the remaning 6.7% will go towards estimated listing expenses.
Follow us on Wechat or Facebook for the latest updates.
Download StarProperty.my e-Mag(bit.ly/StarProperty_Emag) for more articles.
Want to contribute articles to StarProperty.my? Email editor@starproperty.my. [slider id='81590' name='StarProperty' size='full']
