ICTSI shares rise on expansion preparations, improving sector outlook

By Matthew Miguel L. Castillo, Researcher

SHARES of International Container Terminal Services, Inc. (ICTSI) rose last week after the company secured a $300-million loan to support future expansion plans, while sentiment toward the services sector continued to recover, analysts said.

Data from the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) showed ICTSI was the most actively traded stock last week, with 5.88 million shares worth P4.74 billion changing hands as of Friday.

Week on week, the stock rose by 1.3% to P815.50 on Friday from P805 the previous week, outperforming the services sector’s 0.5% gain and the benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index’s (PSEi) 0.2% decline.

Since the end of last year, ICTSI shares have climbed by 43.8% from P567 on Dec. 29, likewise surpassing the services sector’s 27.2% growth and the PSEi’s 1.5% drop.

Timson Securities, Inc. Equity Analyst Juan Alfonso G. Teodoro said in a Viber message that the $300-million loan boosted investor confidence and helped make the stock the week’s most actively traded issue.

ICTSI said in a statement last Wednesday that the loan was obtained from the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) and marked the company’s first non-sovereign-backed deal, or a transaction completed without government financial support.

“For many investors, this signals confidence in ICTSI’s long-term growth and its ability to handle increasing trade and cargo demand,” Mr. Teodoro said.

The loan will be used to expand the capacity and technological capabilities of the Manila International Container Terminal, South Luzon Container Terminal, and Mindanao Container Terminal.

“This development reinforces the market’s confidence in ICTSI’s long-term expansion story… [and will support] aggressive expansion plans despite higher interest rates and an unfavorable macroeconomic backdrop,” Unicapital Securities, Inc. Research Analyst Lance Rafael Y. Cai said in an e-mail.

The stock’s positive performance last week also reflected the services sector’s modest 0.5% gain.

Mr. Teodoro said the sector-wide improvement stemmed from improving investor sentiment toward companies tied to trade and economic activity.

However, ICTSI outperformed its sectoral peers, posting a 1.3% gain for the week.

Mr. Cai said this was driven by the Razon-led company’s continued resilience amid a turbulent macroeconomic environment.

“ICTSI has maintained its planned capital expenditure program despite elevated interest rates, highlighting management’s confidence in executing expansion milestones and delivering continued bottom-line growth,” he said.

In an earnings report released on May 4, ICTSI maintained its $740-million capital expenditure program for the year, which it first disclosed in its annual earnings report in March.

Mr. Cai added that the move allowed ICTSI to outpace competitors that have paused or scaled back development plans amid the same challenging environment.

Meanwhile, Mr. Teodoro said the company’s sustained earnings growth may have further supported positive investor sentiment toward the stock.

In its annual report, ICTSI said attributable net income rose by 21.3% in 2025 to $1.48 billion, while gross revenue increased by 18.1% to $3.23 billion.

Its latest quarterly report also showed attributable net income jumped by 22.6% to $293.57 million, while gross revenue grew by 22.4% to $961.11 million.

For this week, Mr. Teodoro expects the stock to enter a “pause and consolidate” phase and trade sideways after reaching “recent highs.”

“A deeper drop isn’t the main expectation right now, but a mild pullback can still happen if the market weakens or there’s no new catalyst,” he said.

Meanwhile, Mr. Cai expects the stock to sustain its uptrend.

He placed support at P787 and resistance at P866.

Mr. Teodoro, meanwhile, sees support at P780 to P800 and resistance at P850 to P860.