|
IPOs keep markets busy
|
 |
October 27, 1997: 1:57 p.m. ET
A heap of additional public offerings make October busiest month of '97
|
NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Twenty-seven new public offerings raising $1.3 billion dollars are expected this week, bringing the total number of deals in October to 83 -- by far the busiest month this year.
And despite the Asian stock and currency malady which drove U.S. big cap stocks tumbling last week, smaller issues have given up far less. The Dow dropped more than 1-1/2 percent last week and is down nearly 2 percent for the whole month, while the Russell 2000, a basket of small cap stocks, was off less than half a percent last week and is down 1.3 percent for October. IPOs that went public this month are up 14.5 percent on average.
Not only are IPOs higher in the aftermarket, underwriters were able to get better prices for them as well. According to CommScan Equidesk, 39 percent of this month's IPOs were priced above what was originally sought, compared to only 22 percent for the full year.
One issue that will likely see demand before it begins trading: Metromedia Fiber Network. The company, led by billioinaire John Kluge, hopes to capitalize on the increasing demand for high-bandwidth communications services. The company leases its high-bandwidth, fiber-optic infrastructure to long-distance phone carriers, corporations and government agencies. MFN is slated to price between $14 to $16, raising $99 million.
Investors who prefer an IPO with more flavor may want to check out Beringer Wine Estate Holdings. The oldest winery in Napa Valley, founded more than 100 years ago, will go public this week with a $104 million offering at $23 a share. Beringer is the nation's leading producer of premium wines with a 14 percent market share. Its consolidation strategy has enabled the company to grow revenues by 14 percent and profits by 27 percent a year.
"Consolidation has a long way to go in Napa Valley," says Manish Shah of IPO Maven. "They can triple their revenue over the next three years. The stock is not cheap but it's for someone looking for a pure-play Napa Valley wine company."
The lead manager behind Beringer's offering is Goldman Sachs, which will also lead one of this week's biggest deals: AMF Bowling's nearly $250 million IPO, priced between $18 to $21. AMF is the world's largest bowling company in the world, operating 422 bowling centers worldwide. The global market for bowling is $9 billion with 13,000 bowling centers in the world. AMF hopes to garner much of that market share through acquisitions.
|
|
|
|
|
|
IPO monitor
|
Note: Pages will open in a new browser window
External sites are not endorsed by CNNmoney
|
|
|
|
 |
|
