Indonesia's 'Warren Buffett' Doubles Down on Salim Group’s Palm Oil Arm SIMP in Million-Dollar Buying Spree

JAKARTA, Investortrust.id — Legendary Indonesian value investor Lo Kheng Hong has aggressively doubled down on his bet on the country’s agribusiness sector, exploiting a recent share price dip to accumulate a massive position in palm oil producer PT Salim Ivomas Pratama Tbk (SIMP).

According to regulatory filings from the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX), Lo executed a strategic buy of 19.9 million SIMP shares at Rp600 per share on May 18, 2026, injecting an additional Rp11.94 billion ($750,000) into the counter.

The move officially pushes his total ownership from 4.98% to 5.11%, breaching the critical 5% statutory threshold and solidifying his position as the dominant minority retail force behind the corporate giants controlling the company.

When Indonesia’s most tracked value investor crosses a disclosure threshold during a market downturn, global emerging market fund managers take notice. Lo Kheng Hong’s aggressive accumulation indicates that the country’s heavily discounted plantation and agricultural sectors are flashing deep value signals. Despite cyclical commodity pressures, his high-conviction backing of a Salim Group corporate vehicle underscores the underlying strength of Indonesia's domestic consumer food supply chain and infrastructure.

Lo Kheng Hong Locks Position Directly Behind Corporate Titans

Following his latest market raid, Lo Kheng Hong's total stake in the agribusiness firm is valued at Rp429.25 billion ($27 million) based on SIMP's recent closing price of Rp550 per share.

The transaction cements Lo’s position as the third-largest shareholder in the entire company. He sits comfortably behind the parent conglomerate’s direct entities, namely the Singapore-listed Indofood Agri Resources Ltd, which tightly controls a dominant 73.46% stake, and food processing giant PT Indofood Sukses Makmur Tbk (INDF), which holds a 6.68% slice of equity.

Known for his strict adherence to buying deeply underpriced assets with strong cash flows, Lo has historically targeted companies with solid moats that are temporarily unloved by the broader market.

Steady Q1 Earnings Reinforce Value Thesis

The value investor's aggressive accumulation aligns with a resilient fundamental turnaround in the palm oil firm's financial statements. For the first quarter of 2026, SIMP posted a revenue climb to Rp4,86 trillion ($305.6 million), up from Rp4.81 trillion in the same period last year.

Operational efficiency gains pushed the company's EBITDA up significantly, jumping from Rp1.16 trillion to Rp1.34 trillion ($84.2 million) as global supply chain pressures eased.

The bottom-line performance also remained highly stable, with Q1 2026 net profit inching up 1% to Rp586 billion ($36.8 million) against Rp577 billion previously. Although a slight adjustments in outstanding share metrics caused earnings per share (EPS) to fractionally tick down from Rp29 to Rp28, the overall underlying profitability supports Lo's long-term thesis that the asset is heavily mispriced relative to its industrial output.