Virgin Australia has confirmed it will proceed with an Initial Public Offering (IPO) on the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX), releasing a prospectus with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) and filed with the ASX.
According to a statement, the IPO will comprise an offer of 236.2 million fully paid ordinary shares at an offer price of $2.90 per share with a $685 million raise. The ASX relisting will likely see the carrier float with a market capitalisation of around $2.3 billion and an enterprise value of $3.6 billion.
The latest development was reported by The Australian Financial Review this week, with the masthead revealing more details about a soon-to-launch $685 million raise that will see Bain Capital’s stake reduced to 40%.
The news is followed by changes in the Board, including the appointment of Peter Warne as Independent Non-Executive Chairman and Dave Emerson as Managing Director of the Board, who joined the airline as CEO in March.
Other new members include Company Director Melinda Conrad and Pippa Downes, while Mark Drusch, Barnaby Lyons and Ray Hass have concluded their tenures.
Sources have also indicated fund managers have been told VA is on track to make $1 billion in underlying earnings for the year ending 30 Jun.
Media reports have suggested bids from interested investors are due by tomorrow afternoon in preparation for an initial public offering in late Jun.
“After making significant progress in Virgin Australia’s transformation and with the backing of leading global airline Qatar Airways Group as a strategic investor, we believe it is now appropriate for the business to transition to a publicly listed company,” said Warne.
