Biggest #Saudi IPO Since Aramco Seeks to Raise $1.36 Billion - Bloomberg

Biggest Saudi IPO Since Aramco Seeks to Raise $1.36 Billion - Bloomberg

Saudi Arabia’s largest pharmacy retail chain is seeking to raise as much $1.36 billion from an IPO, in what could be the largest listing in the kingdom since oil giant Saudi Aramco went public in 2019.

The price range for Nahdi Medical Co.’s initial public offering has been set at 119 riyals ($31.72) to 131 riyals per share, according to a statement. Institutional book-building for 39 million shares will start Tuesday and end on March 7, with a three-day subscription period for individual investors starting March 13.

More family-owned businesses in Saudi Arabia are listing on the kingdom’s exchange as share sales see huge investor demand, with most IPOs getting priced at the top of offering ranges. The most recent wave has already seen a digital security firm owned by Saudi Arabia’s wealth fund draw about $57 billion in orders from institutional investors.

Saudi Arabia’s benchmark Tadawul All Share Index climbed 11.7% this year in dollar terms, making it the eighth best performing stock benchmark globally. The MSCI Emerging Markets Index is down 4.7% in the same period, amid a slump in global equities.

Saudi Arabian companies raised almost $9.3 billion from share offerings last year, making Riyadh the most active IPO market in the Middle East and Africa behind Israel, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. ACWA Power International’s $1.2 billion IPO last year was the largest since Aramco raised almost $30 billion in the world’s biggest ever stock offering.

Units of HSBC Holdings Plc and Saudi National Bank are managing Nahdi Medical’s IPO.