Mar 2016 Financial News

High Demand For Jetcon Car Dealer IPO

Mar 16, 2016

Certified car dealer Jetcon Cars Limited raised the intended $95.6 million from its initial public offer in a minute.

The company will seek to list this month as the first auto dealer on the market.

"We are very happy for the confidence the investors have placed in us and, by extension, the industry," said founder Andrew Jackson in response to the take-up of the offer priced at $2.25 to the public that closed Monday.

"The used-car industry has played a very important role in the economy, enabling the majority of Jamaicans to own a good car at excellent prices. We welcome new investors to the Jetcon family," he said.

Pre-orders for the stock were heavy before the official opening of the IPO, for which JMMB acted as lead broker. The allotments are expected to be announced today, March 16.

The 22-year-old company, which trades pre-owned vehicles, offered the general public, employees, and existing clients roughly 20 per cent ownership. Jetcon, which is still in growth mode, wants to use the funds to pay down bank debt; build a showroom; expand its bonded warehouse; provide working capital support for the purchase of vehicles; and finance the cost of the IPO.

Jetcon is currently a $523 million company by revenue. It will become the 27th company to list on the junior market, and the fourth so far this year, behind IronRock Insurance, whose IPO was also oversubscribed in a minute earlier this month and whose listing was finalised on Tuesday, March 15. Before that, air conditioning firm CAC 2000 and technology company tTech both listed on January 7, making history as the first simultaneous listings on the stock market.

Source:
business@gleanerjm.com
Jamaica Gleaner
Wednesday March 16, 2016

http://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/business/20160316/high-demand-jetcon-car-dealer-ipo