Ho Chi Minh City, May 7, 2019 – Today, the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange (HOSE) officially opened the first trading session of over 1.4 billion shares of Vietnam Airlines (stock code HVN). The ceremony was attended by leaders of the Commission for the Managenment of State Capital at Enterprises (CMSC) and the State Securities Commission.
According to Decision No. 115 / QD-SGDHCM dated April 11, 2019, HOSE has approved to list 1,418,290,847 HVN shares with the value of over VND14,128 billion (at par value of VND10,000). With reference price on the first trading day of VND40,600 per share with fluctuation band ± 20 per cent , the market capitalization of Vietnam Airlines at HOSE is estimated at VND57,000 billion, equivalent to USD2.5 billion.
Nguyen Hoang Anh, Chairman of the Commission for the Management of State Capital at Enterprises, said: “Vietnam Airlines has become the enterprise with highest capital value to list on HOSE to date this year and also one of the two companies that had listed on the HOSE among the 19 state-owned corporations represented by CMCS. This is a result of enhanced strategic vision that has been implemented by the Vietnam Airlines’ Board of Directors. From our perspective, Vietnam Airlines’ state capital has proved to be an effective investment that provides exceptional benefits to the State, shareholders and employees.”
Pham Ngoc Minh, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Vietnam Airlines said: “The listing on HOSE makrs an important milestone for Vietnam Airlines to futher leverage its legacy, standardize corporate operations and open up opportunities to attract investment. This has also reaffirmed our ongoing commitment to improving the liquidity of HVN shares and maximising shareholder value.”
Earlier, all HVN shares were removed from listing on the UPCoM stock exchange on April 23, 2019. After two years of listing on UPCoM, HVN was one of the stocks with the best liquidity and is among the top 5 most traded stocks with an average of more than 800,000 shares traded per session, equivalent to the value trading of about VND30.6 billion (based on average HVN share price in 2018). This shows the investors’ increasing expectations for the carrier’s development potentials.
Vietnam Airlines has achieved remarkable growth after switching to a joint stock company since April 1, 2015 with revenue and profit targets higher than the previous year. In 2018, Vietnam Airlines nearly exceeded the record high of VND100,000 billion in revenue for the first time. The Group concluded another year of growth due to optimized operational efficiency and market-driven solutions, pocketing the highest consolidated pre-tax profit of VND3,312 billion, exceeding 36.8 per cent of the plan, of which the parent company contributed VND73,227 billion in revenue and VND2,418 billion in pre-tax profit, exceeding 23.4 per cent compared to the target set at the 2018 Annual General Meeting. Financial indicators of Vietnam Airlines have improved significantly as The debt to equity ratio is 2.58 at the end of 2018 and will be reduced to 2.41 by the end of 2019.
The airline’s efforts to enable innovation and development have been recognized by international and national communities through a series of prestigious awards. In 2018, Vietnam Airlines received the prestigious 4-Star Airline Certification from Skytrax for the third consecutive year. With a brand equity of US$416 million, according to Brand Finance, Vietnam Airlines continues to move one position upward in the ranking in the Top 10 of most valuable brands in Vietnam. On the stock market, Vietnam Airlines is honored by HNX in the Top 10 UPCoM Enterprises announcing transparent and public information for the period 2017-2018. In its quest for excellence, the flag carrier is continuing to improve all elements of its service to reach a 5-star status.
In the first quarter of 2019, Vietnam Airlines continued its growth momentum with nearly VND26,000 billion and VND1,579 of consolidated revenue and pre-tax profit respectively, achieving 45 per cent of the year plan. Parent company reached VND19,332 billion in revenue, up 5.5 per cent over the same period and VND 1,279 billion in profit before tax, up 36.6 per cent over the same period. This acts as an important step to boost Vietnam Airlines’ strong earnings performance, increase operational efficiency and benefits to the stakeholders.