KUALA LUMPUR: Distributor of stainless steel sanitary valves, tubes and fittings, Minox International Group Bhd, opened at a 26 per cent premium, or at 31.5 sen, on its debut on the ACE-Market today.
Minox's initial public offering (IPO) was priced at 25 sen.
As at midday break, the company's stock had climbed to 36 sen or 44 per cent higher than its IPO price.
It was the most actively traded stock in morning trade.
Minox managing director Cheong Chee Son said RM22.5 million fresh capital raised through the IPO puts the company on a strong footing to implement its plans to introduce new vacuum fittings and valves tailored for semiconductor production lines and construct a fourth warehouse in Puchong to cater for higher sales volume.
"Beyond the local shore, we are setting up a new warehouse in Singapore to store our new vacuum fittings and valves for the semiconductor industry as well as to store inventories that cater for customers in Singapore and abroad," he said.
"These calculated steps shall help deepen our presence in the semiconductor industry and enhance our inventory capacity as we continue to expand our business.""Moving forward, we are confident that the sanitary valves and fittings industry will continue to flourish driven by the rising population," said Cheong.
An independent market research by Protégé Associates Sdn Bhd projects that the sanitary valves and fittings industry in the Asia Pacific will expand by a compound annual growth rate of 6.1 per cent to reach US$825.6 million in 2027 from US$643.0 million in 2023.
It has allocated RM4 million (17.8 per cent) for product development and deployment, RM4 million (17.8 per cent) for the construction of Warehouse 4 in Puchong, Selangor and RM5 million (22.3%) for the setting up of a new warehouse in Singapore.
The group will utilise RM4.5 million to repay bank borrowings, followed by RM1.6 million for working capital, while the remaining RM3.4 million will be used to cover estimated listing expenses.
For the six months ended June 30, 2023, Minox registered a net profit of RM4 million on the back of RM26.1 million revenue. About 92.7 per cent of the group's revenue was contributed by sales to the food and beverages industry.