MANILA -- JG Summit Holdings said Tuesday it acquired additional shares in PLDT Inc, calling it a "valuable investment."

The Gokongwei group's holding company acquired 7,046,979 common shares of PLDT through the purchase and conversion of ADRs or American Depositary Receipts at $19.70 (P1,003) piece.

This brought JG Summit's total holdings in PLDT to 11.23 percent, the company told the stock exchange. PLDT traditionally pays high dividends, JG Summit said.

JG Summit increased its holdings in PLDT as the telecommunications company shifts to 5G while taking on the third telco, DITO Telecommunity, a partnership between businessman Dennis Uy's Udenna Corp and China Telecom.

Shares of JG Summit were down 0.12 percent in early trading after the acquisition was announced, compared to a 0.53 percent decline in the main index. Shares of PLDT were unchanged.