Food services provider Aramark Holdings Corp raised $725 million from its initial public offering after its shares were priced at the low end of its planned $20 to $23 price range, an underwriter told Reuters.
Aramark, which sold 28 million of the 36.3 million shares in the offering, will have an equity value of about $4.60 billion at the IPO price of $20. As of Sept. 27, the company had $5.82 billion in total debt.
The company was taken private in 2006 for $8.3 billion by Chairman Joseph Neubauer and private equity investors including GS Capital Partners, JP Morgan Partners and Warburg Pincus.
The Philadelphia-based company provides food, facilities and uniforms to the education, healthcare, sports and leisure industries and operates brands such as WearGuard and Crest.
Private equity firms have been trying to sell or list assets to take advantage of a surging IPO market as a market rally and low interest rates entice investors into stocks.
Earlier on Wednesday, hotel operator Hilton Worldwide Inc, which is backed by Blackstone Group LP, raised $2.34 billion after pricing its IPO at $20 per share.
Shares of Aramark, which reported revenue of $13.95 billion and net income of about $70 million for fiscal 2013, will begin trading on the New York Stock Exchange on Thursday under the symbol "ARMK".
Food services firm Aramark raises $725 mln in IPO - underwriter
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