LONDON (Alliance News) - Outsourcer Equiniti Group PLC set the offer price for its upcoming initial public offering at the low end of guidance on Tuesday and saw its shares fall in conditional dealings, while brick maker Ibstock PLC continued to trade above its float price as unconditional dealings started in its shares.
Equiniti said it priced its share offering at 165.00 pence per share, giving it a market capitalisation upon admission on London Main Market of GBP495.0 million. The market capitalisation is at the bottom end of the guidance the company gave when it announced its plans to float earlier this month, when it said it would target a market capitalisation of GBP495.0 million to GBP600.0 million.
On Tuesday morning, shares in the company were trading lower, down 8.0% to 151.75 pence.
Equiniti issued a total of 192.0 million shares and raised gross proceeds from the float of GBP315.0 million, to be used to repay debt and pay for costs related to the float.
Equiniti provides share registration and associated investor services, administers employee share plans, pension adminstration and software, and employee benefit schemes. The company said it currently has around 70 companies in the FTSE 100 and 120 companies in the FTSE 250 on its books.
The group, which became a stand-alone group in 2007 following a carve-out from what was Lloyds TSB, is currently controlled by private equity investor Advent International, which has agreed to subscribe for GBP75 million worth of new shares concurrent to the initial public offering.
Elsewhere, clay bricks and concrete products manufacturer Ibstock continued to trade above its IPO price as unconditional dealings started in its shares. Ibstock shares were up to 195.50 pence, above its float price of 190.00p.
The company is the leading clay bricks manufacturer in the UK by volume, with a market share of around 40%, and has a strong share of the US market through its Glen-Gery subsidiary.
By Sam Unsted; samunsted@alliancenews.com; @SamUAtAlliance
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