Beirut (APD) - The IPO of the Saudi firm Aldrees Petroleum and Transport Services Company (APTSCO) was 225% covered at the end of its first subscription day on Saturday, reported the Riyadh-based business daily al-Iqtisadiya on Monday.
"More than 235,000 subscribers have pumped about SR 499 million ($133.06 million) into the IPO," said Khaled Aldrees, public relations manager at Aldrees Petroleum.
"Aldrees Petroleum has offered 1.2 million shares through the branches of the four banks, Saudi British Bank, Samba Financial Group, al-Ahli Bank and Saudi Hollandi Bank," he added.
The shares offered at the IPO represent 30% of Aldrees Petroleum's capital. Its total number of outstanding shares adds up to 4 million.
The share price is set at SR 185, divided into a par value of SR 50 and an issue premium of SR 135.
Minimum subscription is set at 10 shares and maximum subscription at 5000 shares.
The IPO is expected to attract more subscribers in the next days before it closes on January 30, banking sources said.
"A large number of people I know are lingering for the last days of the IPO in order to spot the allocation rate per shareholder. They are also waiting for theirs salaries in order to provide some money for subscription at Aldrees shares," al-Iqtisadiya quoted Abdullah al-Nasser, a subscriber to the IPO, as saying.
Many Saudi citizens have complained that the number of shared offered at the IPO was too little, the pan-Arab daily Asharq al-Awsat wrote on Monday.
The share's par value should be lowered to allow investors to acquire more shares, one subscriber grumbled.
Aldrees Petroleum had earlier set a minimum allocation of ten shares per subscriber. The remaining shares if any would be allocated on a prorate basis according to the subscription application of each participant at the IPO.
In case the number of subscribers exceeds the number of shares offered at the IPO, allocation will be performed in accordance with the instructions of the Saudi Capital Market Authority (CMA), Asharq al-Awsat said, adding that no minimum allocation would be granted if the number of subscribers exceeds 120,000.
According to the subscriber interest reported during the IPO's first day, this appears to be the case.
Established in 1962, Aldrees Petroleum is involved in the trade, distribution and transportation of petroleum products. It also operates gas stations and service centers. [TS]
By Shikrallah Nakhoul, APD Staff Writer in Beirut
© APD (Arab Press Digest) 2006
