20.78% stake in Bolton done off market

KUALA LUMPUR: Property developer Bolton Bhd saw 20.78% of its shares done off market in several tranches at a slight 2.9% discount to open market prices on Tuesday, July 5.

Who the buyers and sellers are of the 66.67 million shares — crossed in 13 direct deals at RM1 apiece mid-way through the afternoon session  — is not immediately known. On the open market, Bolton shares traded between RM1 and RM1.05 before closing at RM1.03 on Tuesday, down two sen with eight million shares changing hands.

At the time of writing, it could not be ascertained if the transactions would result in the emergence of a new substantial shareholder.

As at June 15 last year, Lee Choong Lim @ Lee Tin Fook was Bolton's largest shareholder with 23.52% equity interest via Forum Equity Sdn Bhd. Executive chairman Datuk Mohamed Azman Yahya held an 18.8% stake via Gajahrimau Capital Sdn Bhd, according to Bolton's 2010 annual report. Azman, who at the time also held a 1.21% direct stake, raised his direct holdings to 2.03% in mid-April, filings showed.

Recent filings with Bursa Malaysia showed a substantial shareholder, Lim Hooi Teik, as a buyer of the company's stock. As at June 27, his direct and indirect stakes were 9.47%, up from 8.93% on April 6 this year.

Bolton is trading at 0.69 times book at current levels.