Does Lopez Holdings Corp (LPZ:PM) own ABS-CBN Corp (ABS:PM) or is it Lopez Inc.?

Happy Easter! Yep it's holy week and I'm spending my time digging in to Philippine stocks and LPZ (Lopez Holdings Corp) caught my eye.

Let me disclose that it was my thinking that LPZ owns some ABS (ABS-CBN Corp) hence the idea of buying ABS cheaper by buying LPZ shares instead came to being. But digging deeper, it appears that LPZ has no ownership in ABS, and that what owns ABS CBN Corp is Lopez Inc. and not Lopez Holdings Corp.

First let's clearly define the three companies mentioned:

1. Lopez Holdings Corporation (LPZ:PM) (formerly Benpres Holdings Corporation) - is a publicly listed holding company incorporated in 1993 by the Lopez family to serve as the holding company for investments in major development sectors such as broadcasting and cable; telecommunications; power generation and distribution; manufacturing and property development.

2. Lopez Inc. - is a private holding company of the Lopez Family which owns 52.6% of Lopez Holdings Corporation.

3. ABS-CBN Corporation (ABS:PM) - is a publicly listed company and the country's largest media conglomerate. It is currently involve in broadcast radio and television as well as cable television (SkyCable, Creative Communications, Inc.), television programming, films, publishing, licensing, and websites

**Note that if you're a retail investor, you can only buy/sell shares of LPZ and ABS but not Lopez Inc.

My concern here is looking at Lopez Holdings Corporation's "portfolio" page in their company website. It says the following:

Lopez Holdings Corporation (formerly Benpres Holdings Corporation) was incorporated in 1993 by the Lopez family of the Philippines to serve as the holding company for investments in major development sectors such as broadcasting and cable; telecommunications, power generation and distribution; and banking. It added to its portfolio, investments in other basic service sectors but has since sold its direct interest in banking, toll roads, information technology, property development, cable and health care delivery.

 Broadcasting & Cable

• ABS-CBN Corporation: The largest news and entertainment content provider in the Philippines that produces multimedia programming for domestic and international audiences. 

• Sky Cable Corporation (controlled by ABS-CBN Corporation): The largest cable operator and pioneer of high definition television in the country, offering value added broadband internet and voice over internet protocol. 

Telecoms

• ABS-CBN Convergence, Inc. (controlled by ABS-CBN Corporation): The first to market fully converged narrowcast-mobile telecom services in the country. 
• Bayan Telecommunications (BayanTel): Customer service leader and innovator, the pioneer in wireless landline. 

Power and Energy

• First Gen Corporation (controlled by First Philippine Holdings Corporation): The largest vertically-integrated power generation company in the Philippines and proponent of clean and renewable energy, with an installed capacity of 2,563 MW. 
• Energy Development Corporation (controlled by First Gen Corporation): The world’s largest integrated geothermal power producer. 

Property Development

• Rockwell Land Corporation (controlled by First Philippine Holdings Corporation): The country’s innovator in luxury urban living, developer and manager of premier residential and commercial properties, and inner city communities. 
• First Philippine Industrial Park (controlled by First Philippine Holdings Corporation): The country’s leading in industrial park development and management. 

Manufacturing

• First Philec Corporation and subsidiaries are First Philex Nexolon Corporation and First Philec Solar Corporation(controlled by First Philippine Holdings Corporation) :  The intermediate holding company for lean manufacturing that includes in its portfolio the country’s pioneer in transformer manufacturing.

It implies that Lopez Holdings Corp has some form of ownership in ABS-CBN, this is also the case when you check LPZ's financial statements. See Lopez Holdings investor relations page.

But, when you dig deeper and see ABS CBN's list of largest share holders, Lopez Holdings Corp is no where be found, what we see however is Lopez Inc.

What this means is if you think that when you buy LPZ shares gives you an exposure on ABS, ownership wise, that may not be the case.

Though let me clarify that I am not yet sure if there's some cross-ownership between LPZ and Lopez Inc. giving LPZ an indirect ownership in ABS as well. But for now these things just doesn't seem to reconcile.

Perhaps a more informed reader and follower of Lopez companies could shed light of this matter? Just hit comment section below.


ABS-CBN Corp Top 20 Common and Preferred shareholders as of 31-Dec-13
(Source: ABC-CBN Corp 2013 Annual Report)

DISCLAIMER: 

This is not an investment advice and the author shall not be responsible or liable for any trading or investment decisions made based on this information.

The author hereby expressly disclaims any responsibility for any error or inaccuracy in the information.