Notable filings

THE Employees Provident Fund (EPF) has ceased to be a substantial shareholder of Media Prima Bhd and Velesto Energy Bhd, according to filings with Bursa Malaysia from April 27 to 30.

On April 28, Media Prima announced that the EPF had disposed of 17.6 million shares or a 1.6% stake in the integrated media company on April 23.

The price at which the block of shares was sold was not disclosed. However, the counter was trading at between 13 and 17 sen, and closed at 15.5 sen on April 23. The disposal reduced the pension fund’s stake in Media Prima to 3.6%.

Aurora Mulia Sdn Bhd, a vehicle related to billionaire Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar Albukhary, remains Media Prima’s single largest shareholder with a 31% stake, while Morgan Stanley remains a substantial shareholder with 12.8% equity interest.

Media Prima closed at 15.5 sen last Tuesday, valuing the group at RM172 million.

The EPF also sold 110.79 million shares or a 1.35% stake in Velesto Energy, reducing its holding in the operator of petroleum drilling rigs to 4.76% as at April 30.

It did not disclose the price at which the shares were sold, but the counter was trading at between 12 and 15.5 sen during the week, and ended at 14.5 sen on April 30. Last Tuesday, Velesto Energy closed at 16 sen, valuing the company at RM1.31 billion.

Since 2015, Velesto Energy has had to face the challenge of an oversupply of drilling rigs, and a decline in exploration and production activities owing to lower oil prices. It registered losses for the financial years ended Dec 31, 2015 to 2018.

Over at Malaysian Genomics Resource Centre Bhd (MGRC), Synamatix Sdn Bhd disposed of 17 million shares or a 16.35% stake in the genome sequencing and screening company. The disposal by the indirect subsidiary of Khazanah Nasional Bhd on April 27 reduced its holding to 11.94%.

The disposal was done at an undisclosed price, but MGRC was trading at between 22 and 31.5 sen on April 27 when the transaction took place. The counter closed at 34 sen last Tuesday, valuing the company at RM35 million.

As at April 29, Khazanah Nasional owned 12.76% of MGRC.

On April 30, G3 Global Bhd announced that a major shareholder, Fountainberry Sdn Bhd, had disposed of 31.5 million shares or a 6.73% stake in the supplier of Internet-of-Things devices. The disposal pared Fountainberry’s holding to 8.5%.

The company did not disclose the sale price. However, the counter was trading at between RM2.03 and RM2.19, and closed at RM2.13 that day. As at last Tuesday’s close of RM2.20, G3 Global was valued at RM1.03 billion.

Notable movements

During the week in review, the share price of Bioalpha Holdings Bhd increased 18.2% to 13 sen. The shares of the health supplement manufacturer ended at 12.5 sen last Tuesday, valuing the group at RM115 million.

On April 27 and 28, Hon Tian Kok @ William sold 12.87 million shares or a 1.4% stake in the company, paring his holding to 10.3%. Bioalpha’s net profit decreased by 24.5% to RM9.06 million last year.

Meanwhile, Rubberex Corp (M) Bhd’s share price increased 12.8% to RM1.50 during the week in review. The counter ended trading last Tuesday at RM1.76 after reaching its five-year peak of RM1.86 during the day.

On April 28, Duvest Holdings Sdn Bhd ceased to be a substantial shareholder of Rubberex after it sold 14.05 million shares or a 5.6% stake. The latter is planning to undertake a private placement to raise RM31 million to expand its production lines of nitrile gloves.