The IPO Buzz: A Blockbuster IPO Week

There’s a bonus this week. Two are household names: Fairway Group (FWM – proposed) and SeaWorld Entertainment (SEAS – proposed). They should attract media attention.

 

The calendar includes a few more IPOs that could be quite interesting this week: Blackhawk Network Holdings (HANK – proposed), Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital (HSAI – proposed) and Truett-Hurst (THST – proposed), a Dutch auction offering.

 

All in all, this week’s calendar lists seven IPOs. They expect to raise $1.9 billion. Now let’s take a closer look.

Fairway Group, a New York City-based grocery chain, plans to offer 13.7 million shares of Class A common stock at $10 to $12 each. The IPO is expected to be priced on Tuesday evening and to trade on NASDAQ Global Market on Wednesday morning under the proposed symbol “FWM.”

 

Fairway began as a fruit and vegetable stand in the 1930s on Broadway and West 74th Street in Manhattan under the name “74th Street Market.” In 1954, it was renamed “Fairway” and, in 1970, it adopted its slogan, “Like No Other Market.” Fairway is known for the quality of its fresh produce and its astonishing selection of artisanal cheese. Some Fairway fans have opted to be married in the Upper West Side store. Fairway now operates 12 high-volume locations in the Greater New York City metropolitan area, three of which include Fairway Wines & Spirits stores.

 

(Note: Fairway Group is selling all the shares in the offering. After the offering, Fairway expects to have about 41.2 million shares of Class A common stock and Class B common stock outstanding.)

 

SeaWorld Entertainment, an Orlando, Florida-based theme park operator, plans to offer 20 million shares at $24 to $27 each. The IPO is expected to be priced on Thursday evening and to trade on New York Stock Exchange on Friday morning under the proposed symbol “SEAS.” The company opened its first park in 1959 in Tampa, Florida. It now operates 11 theme parks under the names SeaWorld, Busch Gardens and Aquatica.

 

(Note: SeaWorld is selling 10 million shares in the offering and insiders are selling 10 million shares in the offering. After the offering, SeaWorld expects to have about 92.7 million shares outstanding.)

 

Blackhawk Network Holdings, a Pleasanton, California-based distributor of prepaid gift, telecom and debit cards, plans to offer 10 million shares of Class A common stock at $20 to $22 each. The IPO is expected to be priced on Thursday evening and to trade on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the proposed symbol “HAWK” on Friday morning.

 

Blackhawk believes it is one of the largest third-party distributors of gift cards offering its services throughout the United States and 18 other countries. The company’s network connects to over 500 content providers and over 100,000 retail distribution locations providing access to over 160 million consumer visits per week. Passing point of interest: The company is being spun off from Safeway.

 

(Note: All of the 10 million shares of Class A common stock are being sold by existing stockholders, including its parent company, Safeway (SWY) After the offering, Blackhawk will have 10 million shares of Class A common stock outstanding and 41.9 million shares of Class B common stock outstanding.)

 

 

Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, an Annapolis, Maryland-based specialty finance company, plans to offer 13.3 million shares at $14 to $16 each. The IPO is expected to be priced on Wednesday evening and to trade on the NASDAQ Global Select Market on Friday morning under the proposed symbol “HASI.”

 

The company provides debt and equity financing for sustainable infrastructure projects that increase energy efficiency, provide cleaner energy sources, positively impact the environment or make more efficient use of natural resources. Since 2000, the company has provided or arranged over $3.9 billion of financing in more than 450 sustainable infrastructure transactions. It believes it has become the leading provider of financing for energy efficiency projects for the U.S. federal government.

 

(Note: Hannon Armstrong is selling all the shares in the offering. After the offering, Hannon Armstrong expects to have about 15.1 million shares outstanding.)

 

Truett-Hurst, a Healdsburg, California-based winery, plans to offer 2.9 million shares at $11 to $15 each. The IPO is expected to be priced during the week of April 15 and to trade under the proposed symbol “THST” on the Nasdaq Capital Market.

 

Note: The deal is coming to market as a Dutch auction. Any qualified investor with a dollar, a dream and the right bid can own shares in the IPO at its initial offering price.

 

The most famous Dutch auction was the 2004 Google (GOOG) IPO. Google offered 19.6 million shares at $85 each on Aug. 18, 2004. It was reported that winning bids received about a 75 percent allocation. The stock opened the next morning at $100 per share. You know what happened to the Google IPO after that.

 

But Dutch auctions usually don’t work this way.

 

That brings us to next week and another IPO calendar.

 

Stay tuned.