PHINMA Education Holdings, Inc. has acquired St. Jude College (SJC) Dasmariñas Cavite for P431.8 million, adding 3,000 students to its network.
PHINMA Education now has 167,000 students across its school network following the acquisition, the company said in a statement on Monday.
“Our newest school expands PHINMA Education’s presence in Southern Luzon and nearby regions,” PHINMA Education Country Chief-Philippines Christopher “Happy” A. Tan said.
The two entities signed a share and asset purchase agreement on Dec. 6 to acquire controlling shares of stock of SJC Dasmariñas Cavite for P85 million, as well as investment in additional shares to acquire land and buildings of the campus and pay debt amounting to P344 million.
“The first closing of the transaction was completed Dec. 6, with the acquisition of shares of the controlling stockholders and payment of P85 million for the said shares,” PHINMA Education said.
“This will be followed by a second closing in January 2025 when the investment, acquisition of the land and buildings, and payment of debt will occur in accordance with the terms of the agreement,” it added.
SJC Dasmariñas Cavite is PHINMA Education’s tenth school in the Philippines and twelfth in its regional network.
Established in 1968, SJC Dasmariñas Cavite offers a variety of tertiary and graduate programs such as Nursing, Radiologic Technology, Psychology, Hospitality Management, and Computer Science.
“We will continue growing our network as we find more ways to reach learners that need education the most. The more students we can serve, the more individuals and families we will uplift through education,” PHINMA Education President and Chief Executive Officer Chito B. Salazar said.
Other schools within the PHINMA Education network include PHINMA Araullo University in Nueva Ecija, PHINMA Cagayan de Oro College, PHINMA University of Iloilo, PHINMA University of Pangasinan, PHINMA Saint Jude College Manila, PHINMA Saint Jude College Quezon City, PHINMA Rizal College of Laguna, PHINMA Union College of Laguna, and Southwestern University PHINMA.
The company also has a presence in Indonesia through Horizon Karawang.
PHINMA Education is the education services sector subsidiary of the Del Rosario-led conglomerate PHINMA Corp.
In October, Phoenix Investments II Pte. Ltd. completed its P2.52-billion initial investment in PHINMA Education. The amount is equivalent to 70.22% of KKR’s total investment worth P3.59 billion. Phoenix Investments is an investment vehicle of funds managed by global investment firm KKR. The funds will be used to finance PHINMA Education’s growth plans.
On Monday, PHINMA Corp. shares were unchanged at P19.40 per share. — Revin Mikhael D. Ochave