Kim Long Securities plans stock split

VNStockNews.com - Kim Long Securities Co (KLS), regularly among the most-active shares on the Ha Noi Stock Exchange, has announced a plan to issue an additional 102.5 million shares and increase its charter capital from VND1 trillion (US$53.2 million) to over VND2 trillion ($106.4 million).

Under the plan, existing shareholders would be offered 100 million shares at a ratio of 1:1, while the remaining 2.5 million would be offered to company staff – exclusive of the general director and members of the boards of management and control – on the condition that they may not be re-transferred prior to September 5, 2010.

But company chairman Ha Hoai Nam, who predicted that some employees would borrow money to purchase the shares, said, "The number of shares put up for sale will not be plentiful after that date since most of our staff want to commit to the company and hold shares."

The timing of the issue had not yet been determined, said Nam, but the firm was finalising for submission to the authorities for approval at the end of March.

Capital raised through the share issue would be used to improve the brokerage’s financial and underwriting capacity, as well as develop new services in an effort to expand market share.

Meanwhile, Nam denied the possibility that KLS would be relocated to the HCM City Stock Exchange, saying that the shares’ liquidity on the Ha Noi bourse was strong and most of the company’s shareholders resided in Ha Noi and the northern region.

KLS last year posted a net profit of VND352 billion ($18.7 million), on which it planned to pay a 3.5-per-cent cash dividend sometime before the end of June.

This year, the brokerage has targeted a profit of VND405 billion ($21.5 million) and a 10-per-cent cash dividend.

Although the firm had maintained a positive outlook on the nation’s stock market this year, its own moves had been cautious, said Nam, noting that it had invested only 50 per cent of its capital in securities.