Integrated property developer SM Prime Holdings Inc., led by the Sy family, has secured the highest rating for its proposed bond issuance of P20 billion, with an oversubscription option of P5 billion.

On Tuesday, the company announced to the stock exchange that PhilRatings had assigned a rating of PRS Aaa to the planned issuance.

The issuance represents the first tranche of SM Prime’s proposed three-year Debt Securities Program, which aims to raise P100 billion.

Significantly, SM Prime’s outstanding bonds, amounting to P135.43 billion, have also maintained their PRS Aaa rating.

Stable outlook

Furthermore, PhilRatings has assigned a stable outlook for the ratings of both the proposed and outstanding bonds.

The PRS Aaa rating is the highest rating bestowed by PhilRatings, indicating that the obligations associated with the bonds are of the highest quality, carry minimal credit risk, and reflect the issuing company’s exceptional capacity to meet its financial commitments.

Driven by a strong economic rebound post-pandemic, SM Prime generated P40 billion in consolidated net income in 2023 — 33 percent higher than P30.1 billion in 2022.

SM Prime said consolidated revenues reached P128.1 billion, 21 percent higher than last year’s P105.8 billion. 

Meanwhile, consolidated operating income grew by 24 percent to P61.3 billion from P49.2 billion.

Strong support and trust

“The favorable result we achieved in 2023 reflects the strong support and trust from our tenants and customers despite the economic challenges encountered in 2023,” SM Prime president Jeffrey Lim said.