Aston Martin confirms London IPO could drive valuation to over £5bn
Aston Martin’s IPO could value it at over £5bn, it confirmed today.
The luxury carmaker is getting into gear for its stock market debut, setting its share price range as between £17.50 and £22.50 for ordinary shares.
Read more: Aston Martin to hire Penny Hughes to lead £5bn float
That range would give the British firm a market cap of between £4.02bn and £5.07bn when it floats on the London Stock Exchange next month.
"By becoming the only automotive company listed on the London Stock Exchange, Aston Martin Lagonda will provide investors with a fitting opportunity to participate in our future success,”Dr Andy Palmer, president and group chief executive, said.
It will float almost 57m shares when it debuts, representing a 25 per cent stake in the company, including existing investors like Adeem Investments, Primewagon and Investindustrial selling off their shares in the company. Senior management will also sell their shares.
However, German car manufacturer Daimler will retain its interest in Aston Martin, converting its non-voting stake into a 4.9 per cent shareholding, locking this up for 12 months post-IPO.
Aston Martin Owners Club members, as well as UK staff and customers, will be able to hold shares in the brand, Palmer said.
He added: “Over the past four years the benefits of the Aston Martin turnaround to the UK economy have been profound. We have secured and created thousands of jobs in the west Midlands and south Wales, boosted our investments in manufacturing and engineering and increased our spend with local suppliers.”
Aston Martin will become a public company on 3 October 2018, first announcing the move earlier this month.
Read more: Aston Martin profits up as company confirms IPO
It reported increased profits of £106m in its half-year results at the end of August, while revenue also grew eight per cent year-on-year to £445m.
The company expects production to build between 6,200 and 6,400 cars in the second half of the year, and with the new Vantage and DBS Superleggera models driving demand.
Former Coca-Cola executive and RBS director Penny Hughes is set to lead the firm’s float as the first female chair of a British car maker.