Saga nudges past issue price on its first day May 29, 2014 Over-50s insurance-to-holiday provider Saga yesterday joined a small band of newly floated firms trading above their issuance stock price, as it began trading in London. The group, which was listed on the stock market at 185p, rose to 188p during the day but ended up barely above its initial price, closing at 185.25p. Saga, which [...]
Flotation frenzy adds new faces to 2014 Rich List May 19, 2014 THIS year’s swathe of initial public offerings (IPOs) has brought some fresh meat to the Sunday Times Rich List, with the founders of Boohoo.com, AO.com and King all joining the monied pack. AO.com founder John Roberts enters the list at 246th, with a wealth stack of £410m. Boohoo.com founder Mahmud Kamani is a new entry [...]
Betters tip Saga stock for strong rise after float May 12, 2014 INSURANCE and consumer services group Saga could be worth up to £2.92bn, well above the expected flotation valuation of £2bn to £2.5bn, according to trades on IG’s grey market in recent days. If the traders are correct, Saga will join other recent initial public offerings (IPO) including Royal Mail, Twitter and Boohoo where the share’s [...]
Shoe Zone putting its best foot forward with a £50m stock float April 28, 2014 DISCOUNT footwear chain Shoe Zone has become the latest retailer queuing up to float on the London Stock Exchange this year. The family-run chain, which runs 554 stores in the UK and Ireland, is looking to raise up to £50m in an initial public offering (IPO) on London’s Alternative Investment Market next month that is [...]
Conviviality Retail in talks to buy Bibby’s Rhythm & Booze stores April 24, 2014 BARGAIN Booze owner Conviviality Retail confirmed yesterday it is in talks with rival off-licensing group Bibby Retail Services to buy a portfolio of stores as it seeks to gain a greater foothold in Yorkshire. The company, which floated on Aim last year, is understood to be interested in buying around 20 of the 50 shops, [...]
Card Factory to deliver £700m float in London April 22, 2014 CARD Factory boss Richard Hayes said yesterday that it hopes to emulate the success of other value retailers such as Poundland after announcing plans for float that could value the group at around £700m. The budget greetings chain, which has 700 stores, intends to raise £90m through an initial public offering that will allow its [...]
Old Mutual ups Boohoo stake April 22, 2014 FTSE 100 listed finance group Old Mutual, home of top investor Richard Buxton, has upped its stake in online fashion retailer Boohoo, helping it become one of the firm’s biggest institutional shareholders. The company yesterday revealed it had amassed a 9.4 per cent stake in the Manchester-based company, which floated on the London stock market [...]
Zeus Capital top of the board for junior flotations April 14, 2014 LONDON’S northern rival Manchester has emerged as a burgeoning scene for equity capital markets, with a Salford-based advisory rocketing to the top of the league for junior market listed flotations for the first time. Zeus Capital has soared to the top of the Alternative Investment Market (Aim) adviser rankings for new firms coming to market, [...]
Inside Track: The new issues market drifts into ever choppier waters April 10, 2014 THIS was the week when a sudden reality check intervened in the new issues market. It came after a blissful start to the year that has seen share prices popping, books covered multiple times and investors cashing out most profitably. The big losers earlier this week were the technology stocks, with shares in AO World, [...]
AO World shares steady after update showing 40pc growth April 10, 2014 SHARES IN newly-listed fridge seller AO World steadied yesterday after the firm’s maiden trading update confirmed it was on track to deliver 40 per cent revenue growth. AO, which floated in February, has been routed this week along with other tech stocks in London and the US on fears that a bubble was forming within [...]