DUBAI, United Arab Emirates – Dubai parking operator Parkin’s shares soared more than 30% on Thursday as its shares listed on the Dubai Financial Market.
Parkin’s price per share jumped to 2.73 dirhams ($0.74) as trading began, marking an overwhelmingly positive development for the United Arab Emirates’ first public listing this year. The shares were initially priced at Dh2.1, valuing the company at $1.7 billion.
Raised AED 1.57 billion Parkin’s initial public offering ($429 million) was oversubscribed 165 times, with demand reaching Dh259 billion, a record for the exchange.
Parkin is Dubai’s largest provider of paid parking services and as the city’s population grows, its demand will increase further. Expat Center in the first half of 2023 increased by 63% Number of residence visas issued compared to the same period last year.
“There are clear signs that Dubai is on a growth trajectory and Parkin is integral to the city of Dubai,” Parkin Chairman Ahmed Hashem Bahrozyan told CNBC’s Dan Murphy shortly afterwards. Part of it. So as Dubai grows, it’s only natural that Parkin will grow with it.” Thursday after trading began.
Dubai paid parking provider Parkin listed on the Dubai Financial Market Exchange in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, on March 21, 2024.
CNBC
Parkin’s owner, the Dubai Investment Fund, provided a 25% stake in the company when it floated, and demand has been high from state institutions and households, a sign of strong investment interest in the Gulf.
Parkin’s prospectus said it would allocate 100% of profits or free cash flow, whichever is higher, to equity “subject to distributable reserve requirements”.
Asked whether the company would be able to maintain these levels of spending in the future, Barozyan said: “We’re very confident that we can, and as I said, the level of growth in the city promises that we will grow. And we do have very Spending across the board.” And a very strong expansion plan… We are committed to doing our best to maximize value for all shareholders. “
Parkin’s listing follows a relatively quiet period for Dubai listings, after a number of the emirate’s major utility and critical infrastructure operators underwent marathon public offerings and successful listings in 2022.
These include Dubai electricity and water company DEWA, the city’s largest-ever IPO, raising Dh22.3 billion in April 2022, as well as toll operator Salik, district cooling service provider Empower and Dubai Taxi.
Parkin is the sixth company to IPO under Dubai’s public listing plan launched in 2021. The city is looking to boost liquidity and trading volumes on local exchanges to better compete with regional counterparts in Abu Dhabi and Riyadh.
More broadly, the Gulf region has seen a flurry of IPOs, most of them in Saudi Arabia. In 2023, 35 Saudi Arabian companies were publicly listed, along with eight in the UAE, two in Oman and one in Qatar.
“I think we’re still in an IPO boom, but it’s a healthy boom,” Fadi Arbid, founding partner and chief information officer of Amwal Capital Partners, a Dubai-based investment management firm, told CNBC. . ”
“In Dubai, the government is interested in privatizing some showy assets and opening them up to the public and global investors. In Saudi Arabia, there is a similar push from the private sector and the government.”
He added that a Saudi IPO would have the advantage of being “supported by a deep retail market.”
“It’s still a healthy pipeline,” Albid said. “Now it’s all about pricing.”
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