11 Few private equity-backed IPOs
SATS was the largest Nordic listing in 2019, in a generally weak year for private equity-backed IPOs.
In 2019, only three private equity sponsored IPOs were completed on the main markets, a decrease from six such IPOs in 2018, which was also a weak year. The largest listing in 2019 on the main markets was the leading Nordic fitness chain SATS on the Oslo Stock Exchange in October with a market cap of €394 million.
“Our investment in SATS goes back to 2011 when we invested in Elixia. The two merged in 2013 and since then, the fitness market has changed a whole lot. We are happy that the company got listed and believe that it will have good, long-term growth. It has a lot of development potential,” says Pål Stampe, partner at Altor.
Norwegian oil exploration and production company, OKEA, was also listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange; OKEA’s valuation was €218 million at the time of the IPO in June 2019. Aprea Therapeutics was listed on NASDAQ Global Select Market in October.
Two private equity sponsored IPOs were also completed on other Nordic markets: Kahoot! on Oslo Merkur Market, and Mentice on Nasdaq First North. Also, private equity-backed Vicore Pharma was listed on Nasdaq Stockholm main market, switching from Nasdaq First North.
Swedish buyout giants went public
When talking about fund managers, EQT, the largest private equity group in the Nordics, went public on NASDAQ Stockholm in September 2019. With €40 billion under management, EQT is also one of the largest private equity groups in the world.
The IPO was successful with a 25 percent surge in its share price the first day, valued more than €7 billion in offering, crushing expectations. By the end of 2019, EQT’s market cap was about €10 billion.
“The IPO is a natural step in our development path and gives us the opportunity to continue growing and investing in the EQT platform while maintaining our relentless focus on performance,” Christian Sinding, CEO and managing partner at EQT, said in a statement.
Private equity-sponsored listings in 2019
| Company name | Home country | Sector | Private equity fund | Stock exchange | Market cap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SATS | Norway | Consumer | Altor Equity Partners | Oslo Stock Exchange | €394 million |
| Okea | Norway | Energy | Seacrest Capital | Oslo Stock Exchange | €218 million |
| Aprea Therapeutics | Sweden | Health Care & Life Science | HealthCap, 5AM Ventures, Industrifonden, Karolinska Development, Sectoral Asset Management, Versant Ventures | Nasdaq Global Select Market | €265 million |