Jupiter sharply higher on market debut

Date: Monday, June 21, 2010
Author: Reuters

British fund manager Jupiter JUP.L returned to the London stock exchange on Monday, riding buoyant markets to debut 15 percent over the price set in an initial public offer (IPO) last week.

Jupiter raised 220 million pounds ($326.3 million) to pay off debt and secured a 33.5 million pound windfall for selling shareholders in its IPO, which priced at 165p pence.[ID:nLDE65A19F] [ID:nLDE65A0ZB]

The shares were changing hands at around 190 pence in early trades on Monday morning, after already soaring above that level in grey market trading last week.

Jupiter's flotation marks its second outing on the London market, after it first listed in 1991 before being taken private in 1995 when it was bought by Commerzbank (CBKG.DE).

Ownership passed to staff in a management buyout backed by private equity firm TA Associates in 2007, and a motive behind last week's IPO was to refinance the debt issued as part of the transaction.