For AP Securities, this reinforces their “strong buy” rating on the company with a price target of P32.23 per share, said research head Alfred Benjamin R. Garcia.
“This is [Phinma Education Holdings’] first acquisition since the closing of KKR’s P2.5-billion initial investment into PHN’s education subsidiary, and the company is currently looking at other acquisition targets in Metro Manila, Bacolod, and Davao, as well as international expansions in Indonesia, Cambodia, and Vietnam,” Garcia said.
The recent deal, which expands the group’s domestic education network to 10 schools, will accelerate growth.
Garcia said the business exceeded their forecast of 161,000 students by year-end 2024.
“The company is on track to meet its enrolment target of 175,000 students by 2025. Taking a more long-term view, [Phinma Education] is also likely to meet its very ambitious goal of 350,000 students in the next five years, making it the largest private school network in the Philippines, if not in Southeast Asia,” he added.
Currently, Phinma Education accounts for 45 percent of the group’s valuation and is also its most profitable subsidiary.
Miguel R. Camus has been a reporter covering various domestic business topics since 2009.
