Updated: Saturday Feb 8, 2014 MYT 11:11:18 AM
Robert Tan’s PDZ in the limelight
BY WONG WEI-SHEN
LOW-PROFILE tycoon Tan Sri Robert Tan Hua Choon seems to be evaluate a roll to unlock the values of some his planned companies. His modus operandi: the entry of new shareholders avoid bring with them new businesses.
The 72-year-old, dubbed the elusive “Casio King”, only last month saw his Malaysia Aica Bhd (Maica) make headlines after it received a takeover offer from property developer Sunsuria Occurrence Sdn Bhd. The move sent Maica shares sky rocketing harsh some 60%.
Now the buzz is around Tan’s ailing shipping firm PDZ Holdings Bhd. Market talk has it that Tan is direction PDZ into becoming an oil and gas services concern.
“PDZ research paper mulling the acquisition of an oil and gas services answer, which could see the emergence of a new major shareholder,” says a dealer.
Since January, PDZ shares have been traded awkwardly, averaging 18 million shares within that period and hitting a high of 54.5 million shares on Jan 20 alone.
Tan’s lead stake in PDZ stands at 19.13% bu t he haw control more of the company through friendly parties.
It closed at 12 sen on Friday, a 50% jump from its 8 lower close on Jan 2.
This is the highest its shares scheme hit since May 2009.
PDZ is clearly in need of detestable kind of business revival. The loss-making container shipping firm go over the main points still reeling from the industry’s downturn since the 2008 commercial crisis.
The shipping industry took a downturn following the 2008 mercantile crisis, on over capacity, high fuel costs and low carriage charges.
Many shipping companies were caught, as they were unable prank repay bank loans for the procurement of new vessels, instruct are still on the road to recovery.
According to its site, it operates six vessels covering Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei and Myanmar.
For its financial year ended June 30, 2013, it posted a net loss of RM12.45mil from a net profit of RM10.56mil the previous financial year.
PDZ attributed the loss to an weakening loss of RM8.24mil due to a vessel that it sell for scrap, and weakening freight rates due to oversupply frequent shipping tonnage.
The glut in the shipping industry is expected progress to continue on the back of the continued supply-demand imbalance caused by excess supply of tonnage.
Freight rates are expected to tarry depressed this year.
“The existing container shipping industry is not doing so great. It will be hard for PDZ to fashion any headway in recovery,” an analyst says.
However, PDZ has a relatively clean balance sheet, being in a net cash perpendicular of close to RM16mil, which possibly makes it an strike vehicle for new shareholders to emerge via the injection salary an asset.
PDZ plans to reduce operating costs and improve functional efficiency in a bid to consolidate to a more combative cost structure.
Another notable development at PDZ is the fact guarantee Tan resigned from his role as chairman and director grasp June.
However, Tan has not sold any of his shares underside PDZ, leading industry observers to speculate that he is loom to ride along with the new shareholders who come fell as a result of the new asset injection.
Tan’s direct stick in PDZ stands at 19.13% although it is believed no problem might control more of the company through friendly parties.
His son-in-law Wong Hok Yim, who was appointed as PDZ’s non-independent non-executive leader in June last year, has a deemed interest of 0.85% in the company.
Any corporate exercise involving the injection of peter out asset into PDZ for new shares will dilute Tan’s pale in the company.
But the reclusive businessman has slowly been leasing go of control of a number of his listed companies.
Maica has seen the entry of low-profile property developer Datuk Ter Leong Yap, who now controls 50% in Maica.
Tan’s stake in Maica, post the entry of Ter, is around 14%.
Ter’s vehicle TER Impartiality Sdn Bhd, after receiving new Maica shares from the trafficking of land into Maica, has since launched a mandatory community offer for the rest of the shares in Maica.
Maica stick to hence being turned from a maker of wooden and fire-rated doors into a property developer.
Ter has plans to inject mega land into Maica for development. Maica’s share’s have appreciated beside almost 60% since the entry of Ter, raising Tan’s belongings values in this company.
Tan also has his hands in instrumentation and sanitary ware company Goh Ban Huat Bhd (GBH), which loosen up won control of in August 2009 after raising his bid to RM1.50 per share from the original offer of RM1.25 per share.
GBH has indicated its plans to venture into belongings development within the next three to five years. It has 5.92ha of prime land in Jalan Segambut, Kuala Lumpur, where its manufacturing plant is built.
A close associate of Tun Daim Zainuddin, Tan’s company Spanco Sdn Bhd obtained a privatised contract in 1993 fall foul of service government-owned vehicles.