Guidetti’s comment came after Singapore billionaire Philip Ng upped his stake in Vitasoy to 12.26% from 11.87%, raising speculation over potential takeover efforts.
Ng raised the holding via vehicles including Yeo Hiap Seng (SGX:Y03
) , one of Singapore’s largest beverage companies and part of the Ng family’s business group Far East Organisation.
Vitasoy’s shares surged as much as 32% in Hong Kong Wednesday, the most since its listing in 1994.
Vitasoy executive chairman Winston Lo declined to comment on Ng’s move at an earnings briefing Tuesday and said he had no idea what Ng plans to do. Ng hasn’t publicly made any comment on his stake increase.
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Vitasoy’s profit rose 5% to HK$171 million ($29.60 million) for the six months ended September. It announced an interim dividend of 4 Hong Kong cents per share, compared with 1.4 Hong Kong cents a year before.
