Cenkos set for bumper payday from the AA’s float ambition
A GROUP of 10 institutional investors have been brought together by Cenkos, the mid-tier broker and investment house, to support an imminent flotation of AA, the road assistance firm, in another major share issue for the London market.
The deal, which could be revealed as early as this week, City A.M. understands, would be a significant coup for Cenkos, which is on course for a bumper fee. Bankers said Cenkos could earn as much as £23m from the deal, which would dwarf the £12m fee earned by Rothschild on the flotation of AO World. Earlier this year Cenkos reported a 50 per cent rise in pre-tax profits to £10.7m.
Cenkos approached the owners of the AA earlier this year with the idea of putting in place a so-called club deal, which involves a number of significant shareholders committing to the deal at an early stage. AA is owned by Acromas, the holding company that also owns Saga. The insurance-to-travel group is already heading for the stock market.
“Since the successful refinancing of the AA we have had a number of unsolicited approaches, including one from Cenkos. We are in the process of examining these,” said Acromas.