KUALA LUMPUR (April 8): Tychoon Tan Sri Surin Upatkoon’s 31%-owned MWE Holdings saw 11.5 million shares or a 5% stake traded off market today, for a total value of RM79.3 million.

According to Bloomberg data, the shares were moved in two blocks via direct business transaction at RM1.30 per share — 12 sen or 8.45% lower than today’s closing price of RM1.42.

The buyers and sellers of the shares were not immediately known.

MWE rose 2 sen or 1.43% to RM1.42 today, with 5,100 shares traded for a market capitalisation of RM326.93 million. Year-to-date, the counter has fallen 6.58%.

Based on Bloomberg data, Surin’s investment vehicle Pinjaya Sdn Bhd owned 30.9% of MWE. This is followed by Greenland Timber Industries Pte Ltd with a10.64% stake.

Last year, Surin unsuccessfully tried to privatise MWE, with an offer price of RM1.70.

The textile manufacturer is also involved in property development and management, telecommunication products, and oil palm cultivation.

In a report dated Feb 15, Public Investment Bank said it likes MWE on the expectation of explosive growth over the next few years.

The key drivers include the group’s 50% capacity expansion in its Vietnamese textile manufacturing plant, and value enhancement from its 25% stake in Kumpulan Europlus. MWE will also be one of the beneficiaries under the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement.

The research house expects to see 20% to 50% earnings growth from the group over the next three years, and opines the counter is undervalued at price-earnings of 8 to 9 times.