Shares up 40% as investors clamour for AO
SHARES in washing machine to coffee maker retailer AO World have surged on their stock market debut amid strong institutional demand.
At one stage shares were as much as 412p 44% above the 285p offer price, though by close of trading on Wednesday had settled back to 390p – up 37%.
Sources told TheBusinessDesk.com that the share placing was over-subscribed by a significant multiple, with institutional shareholders keen to take advantage of the Bolton company’s growth prospects.
The company which has a 24% market share in the plans to invest the £60m it has raised in the IPO to enter new geographical markets, with Germany the first location to be targeted.
AO is the first of several prominent North West companies joining the public markets in the coming weeks, including Pets at Home and Manchester-based online fashion retailer Boohoo.com, which is set to join the junior market AIM in March.
