14 April 2004 03:28
Top Cosmetics Firm Sets April IPO Date
The Kalina company is set to become the first domestic cosmetics and toiletries firm and the fourth Russian company
overall to list on a local bourse.
The company, which one U.S. fund manager has called the "Procter & Gamble of Russia," has slated an
initial public offering for the end of April.
Most of the $26 million it expects to raise from the additional issue of 1.4 million shares will be pumped into
developing its brand portfolio, the company's financial director, Alexander Petrov, said Tuesday.
In addition, the new emission will be roughly matched by sales of existing shares held by management and the European
Bank for Reconstruction and Development, which has a 19.23 percent stake in Kalina.
The company's total free-float on the Moscow Interbank Currency Exchange, or MICEX, would then total about 32
percent. Timur Goryayev, Kalina's general director, is the biggest shareholder in the firm with 66.04 percent.
A source familiar with the IPO said that Kalina is hoping to place the shares at between $18.40 and $20.50. The road
show is due to kick off on April 19.
Kalina brands cover a gamut of products ranging from Fresh-Avalanche toothpaste and Black Pearl skincare products to
detergents and surface cleaners. With a total of seven factories in Uzbekistan, Ukraine and Russia, the
Yekaterinburg-based company reported a 25 percent rise in sales in 2003.
Petrov said that two-thirds of the money raised would go towards developing the company's brands, in particular
cosmetics and toothpaste.
"We plan to focus on key areas and I believe we can offer tough competition," he said.
Independent analysts predicted that the shares would be snapped up.
Alexander Svinov, a consumer goods analyst at Alfa Bank, said that the share price is well-judged and that it is
logical that the extra money be spent on marketing brands.
His counterpart at UFG, Alexei Krivoshapko, anticipated that the IPO would interest a broad range of foreign and
local investors and would be oversubscribed three or four times, "no problem."
Aton's Alexei Yazikov said he was looking forward to hearing more about the company's growth plans. A
dominant position in the regions means the company can keep sales up, but with customers focusing on cheaper products
there was a danger that profits could stagnate, he said.
Analysts said they did not expect any last minute delays as befell 36.6 drugstore chain, which pushed back its IPO
date by a week in January 2003 and marked down the share price. Eventually the company made some $14 million on the
placement.
Yazikov said a postponement was unlikely in the case of Kalina.
"The market is hot. People are looking for new shares," he said.
The country's first homegrown IPO two years ago, by Internet company RosBusinessConsulting raised $10 million
but was too small to allow high trading volumes.
The biggest IPO in the short history of Russian listings was Irkut's oversubscribed placement of 23 percent of
its shares for $127 million in March.
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[The Moscow Times] |
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