No signs of let up in London’s flotation flurry
INVESTORS will intensify their love affair with the new issues market today as high street stalwarts Pets at Home and Poundland close the books on their multi-million pound London floats.
Yesterday foreign exchange business Travelex became the latest UK firm to say it was exploring an initial public offering (IPO) while Israeli digital advertising firm Matomy Media unveiled plans to raise $100m in London.
The flotation of Pets at Home is understood to be veering towards a price floor of 245p a share, although this could rise before books close today, a source said. Investors have been asked to apply for shares by this evening – a day earlier than planned. “We’re in good shape,” a second source said.
Poundland will also reveal its price tomorrow morning, and is hoping to get close to 300p a share.
The two firms, which announced plans to join the market last month, will start trading later this week after revealing the price of shares tomorrow morning. Though retail investors were locked out of the Poundland float an allocation in Pets at Home shares will be given to savers.
“There’s undoubtedly growing interest in new issues from retail customers,” says Lauren Charnley of stockbrokers Redmayne. “Clients don’t even mind what the company is as long as it is a new issue.”
The latest IPOs are part of a glut of companies seeking to come to market in London, raising fears that investors could lose their appetite for new issues.