Wind turbine components maker SIF has muted Amsterdam debut (updated)
12/05/2016 11:10
(Updates with details, quotes after IPO)
By Toby Sterling
AMSTERDAM, May 12 (Reuters) - Sif Group SIFG_w.AS , which
makes steel tubes used in offshore energy platforms, had a muted
debut in Amsterdam on Thursday, where its shares traded only
just above a listing price of 14 euros.
Sif, which aims to capitalise on a construction boom in wind
turbines in the North Sea, had priced its initial public
offering on Wednesday at the bottom of a 14 to 17 euro range.
At 14 euros, Sif is worth 357 million euros ($407 million),
or about seven times its underlying operating profit in 2015.
Sif's listing process took more than a year because of a
cautious mood among investors towards building companies linked
to offshore energy. Its IPO was postponed once in February due
to poor market conditions.
At the start of trading on the Euronext stock exchange CEO
Jan Bruggenthijs said production was booming, despite the
malaise in the offshore oil markets, and he hoped the company
would be able to show investors strong financial results.
"We see enormous opportunities in ... wind, they keep coming
our way. But we also do see opportunities in oil and gas, and we
won't let those get away either," he said.
Private equity firm Egeria Capital and members of the
company's founding family sold a 31 percent stake in the stock
market listing.
In 2015, the company's earnings before interest, taxes,
depreciation and amortisation were 55.3 million euros, from 45.7
million in 2014, according to company documents.
Sif, based in Roermond in the southern Netherlands, is
currently adding new construction capacity in Rotterdam.
Bruggenthijs said the company's production was running at
more than 4,000 tons per week.
"To give an idea, every two, two and a half weeks we're
producing an Eiffel Tower worth of steel turbines," he said.
Global coordinators for the listing were ABN Amro and HSBC
HSBA.L , with ING ING.AS and Rabobank acting as joint lead
managers.
Sif, which originally stood for Schmeitz Industriële
Fabricage, was founded in 1948.
($1 = 0.8768 euros)
($1 = 0.8765 euros)
(Additional reporting By Thomas Escritt. Editing by Jane
Merriman)
((Thomas.Escritt@thomsonreuters.com; +31 20 5045006; Reuters
Messaging: thomas.escritt.thomsonreuters@reuters.net))
Keywords: SIF HOLDING IPO/