TWO former senior employees of UOB Kay Hian Private Limited (UOBKH) were charged on Wednesday for allegedly lying to the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) in relation to reports on a then Catalist aspirant. Lan Kang Ming, 38, and Wee Toon Lee, 34, each face three charges of providing MAS with false information in October 2018 in relation to due diligence reports on an unidentified company applying to list on the Catalist board of the Singapore Exchange. MAS said in a media statement on Wednesday that it was performing an onsite inspection of UOBKH between June and August 2018, to assess the latter's controls, policies and procedures in relation to its role as an issue manager for Initial Public Offering (IPOs). During the examination, Lan and Wee were said to have provided different versions of a due diligence report relating to background checks on a company applying to be listed on the Catalist board of the Singapore Exchange. UOBKH had acted as the issue manager
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Angela Tan
03 October 2013
Investors of Blumont Group, whose stock is arguably one of the best performing this year, would be laughing all the way to the bank had they held on to the shares they bought early this year.
After hovering at around 20 to 30 cents in late 2012, the stock has been heading northwards this year, ending at $2.39 yesterday despite shedding five cents. This even after the stock traded ex-entitlement on Sept 19 for a 1-for-2 rights issue at five cents. Some label it a darling stock, citing the volumes that accompanied the sharp spike of late.
So what exactly is this gem of an investment?
Blumont was previously Adroit Innovations, an e-business solutions provider offering a full range of Internet professional services. In April 2011, it changed its name to Blumont. Today, led by chairman Neo Kim Hock and executive director James Hong, it derives most of its revenue from the provision of sterilisation and irradiation services.
But its recent financial performance has not been particularly impressive.
For the second quarter ended June 30, 2013, Blumont suffered a loss of $22.39 million (due to fair value adjustments of financial assets) compared to a net profit of $11.90 million a year ago. Revenue fell 5 per cent to $714,000. As a result, net profit for the first six months of 2013 fell 63 per cent to $8.58 million compared to $23.39 million a year ago.
As at end-June 2013, its net cash and cash equivalent stood at $2.2 million, a rise of $0.62 million from end-2012, due mainly to the sale of quoted financial assets and a property at Clear Water Residence, Malaysia. Net asset per share was 6.27 cents.
Yet, its market value has surged from about $500,000 at the start of the year to an eye-watering $6 billion recently, making it bigger than Temasek-linked SIA Engineering and property giant Keppel Land.
At current prices, the stock is trading at a staggering 446 times its historical price-earnings multiple.
So, it was not surprising that many questions have been raised. On Tuesday, the Singapore Exchange finally issued a detailed query to the company on its latest trading activity. Meanwhile, investor lobby group Securities Investors Association Singapore (SIAS) also weighed in and demanded a “spee-dy investigation” into the unusual share price increase.
“Shareholders need to know the basis and whether the 8-fold price increase is supported by fundamentals of the company,” its president David Gerald stated.
SGX noted that since December 2012, Blumont made announcements on acquisitions and investments in nine companies, of which small investments of under A$/US$10 million were made in six companies. Of the remaining investments, the highest involved a purchase price of up to S$48 million. There was also another investment in Brisbane-based copper explorer Discovery Metals, for A$8.76 million in equity and US$100 million of convertible bonds.
“These announcements may not sufficiently explain the steep increase in the price of Blumont shares,” the regulator noted.
When announcing its recent 1-for-2 rights issue, Blumont said it was to raise about $43 million for business expansion, including through acquisitions, investments, joint ventures and other collaborations. The 861 million new shares were issued at five cents each - a huge discount of about 96 per cent to the volume-weighted average price of $1.327 per Blumont share on July 26.
“The price of the rights share, which started trading on 26 September 2013, rose from $2.10 to $2.57, surpassing the share price which increased to $2.45,” said SGX.
It is good to see SGX shifting away from its typical stock query and adopting a tougher stance.
But the gravity-defying rise of the stock, with volume to boot, appears to defy fundamentals. A question uppermost in the minds of investors is whether the sharp rise of the stock is just a matter of market speculation or whether there is more than meets the eye.