Dragon Capital favors PV Drilling’s stock for short-term trading

Dragon Capital, one of the most prominent investment fund groups in Vietnam, has been actively trading PVD shares of PV Drilling, the drilling arm of state-owned Petrovietnam, with a stake ranging from 4.9% to 5.1%.

On November 7, the Dragon Capital-linked group, represented by Truong Ngoc Phuong, announced that DC Developing Markets Strategies Public Limited Company had sold 600,000 PVD shares, reducing its holdings to 6.9 million.

This sale brought the group’s total ownership of PV Drilling down to 27.77 million shares, or 4.99%, eliminating it as a "major shareholder".

Dragon Capital first became a major shareholder in PV Drilling in September 2022, steadily increasing its position to about 10-11% by the end of the year, or around 60-62 million shares.

This period coincided with a market bottom, as the VN-Index, tracking the performance of the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE), fell to around 900 points, and PV Drilling’s stock price hit a low of just VND13,000 ($0.51) per share.

In early 2024, CTBC Vietnam Equity Fund – a key member of the Dragon Capital group holding the largest number of PVD shares – announced it had sold its entire stake, effectively exiting as a major shareholder.

In April 2024, the group reported that it held only 26.7 million shares, or 4.8%, with CTBC Vietnam Equity Fund no longer listed among those holding PVD shares. This came just as the ticker hit a nine-year high of VND33,000 ($1.3) per share.

CTBC Vietnam Equity Fund, established by CTBC Investment - a leading asset management firm in Taiwan in 2020, had Dragon Capital as its advisor. In addition to reducing its stake in PV Drilling, the fund also divested from other significant holdings, including FPT Retail (FRT) and Ha Do Group (HDG).

Since then, PV Drilling’s stock has declined in line with broader market trends, dropping to VND23,700 ($0.94) per share – a 28% decrease in the last seven months. Despite this, Dragon Capital has continued to trade PVD shares, with its stake fluctuating between 4.9% and 5.1%.

Profit recovery after the 2022 energy crisis

PV Drilling provides offshore drilling services and owns a fleet of six rigs, including four self-elevating, one semi-submersible, and one onshore drilling one.

In its heyday, PV Drilling posted revenue exceeding VND20 trillion ($789 million) and net profit of VND2.4 trillion. However, following a sharp drop in global oil prices in 2016, the company’s business began to suffer, with many rigs sitting idle and rental rates plummeting.

The company turned a corner after the global energy crisis in 2022, triggered by the Russia-Ukraine conflict. The crisis underscored the importance of energy self-sufficiency, boosting demand for oil exploration and production (E&P) activities.

PV Drilling also expanded internationally, reversing years of low rig utilization and falling rental rates. By the end of 2022, all of its offshore rigs were fully booked for international contracts through 2025, with some extending into 2028.

As a result, PV Drilling’s revenue for 2022 rose 35% to VND5.4 trillion ($213 million). However, rising LIBOR (London Inter-Bank Offered Rate) rates and currency fluctuations increased financial costs, while higher provisions for bad debts and increased management expenses led to a net loss of VND154 billion ($6.08 million).

In 2023, its revenue improved by 7%, reaching VND5.8 trillion ($228.8 million). The increase in rig rental rates and utilization helped improve the gross profit margin from 10.6% to 22.5%. As a result, PV Drilling posted a net profit of VND546 billion ($21.54 million), its highest since 2016.

At the end of Q3/2024, the company reported a 61% increase in revenue to VND6.48 trillion ($255.66 million). However, the profit margin slightly softened to 21.2%, and financial costs remained high, limiting the after-tax profit growth to 33%, reaching VND461 billion ($18.2 million).

According to Riglogix forecasts, Southeast Asia alone will require 45 to 50 self-elevating rigs per year over the next four years, while supply will only meet 70%-80% of this demand.

Malaysia and Indonesia are expected to need over 14 rigs annually through 2030 to meet the demands of drilling 160 to 175 wells each year. Similarly, drilling demand is rising in Vietnam for major projects such as Kinh Ngu Trang (White Whale) and Su Tu Trang (White Lion), while domestic rig supply remains limited.

As a result, PV Drilling plans to acquire additional drilling rigs, including a versatile three-legged jack-up rig. The company’s investment strategy also includes the potential purchase of another self-elevating rig, depending on market conditions and the availability of suitable equipment.

By the end of Q3/2024, PV Drilling’s total assets had grown to VND23 trillion ($907.4 million), an increase of nearly VND1.4 trillion from the start of the year. More than half of these assets are fixed assets, primarily rigs. Additionally, the company held VND3.16 trillion in cash and cash equivalents, as well as VND884 billion in held-to-maturity investments.

PV Drilling carried long-term debt of VND2.58 trillion ($101.8 million) and short-term debt of VND470 billion. The majority of these debts were in USD and used to finance rig purchases, with the largest loan being $100 million from Vietcombank to finance the acquisition of the PV Drilling VI rig.