Dick Smith Holdings has now been officially listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) but the hype around the consumer electronics business making its debut has fallen a little short.
The initial share price was $2.20 each and rose to as high as $2.32 during but by closing it fell back down to $2.20.
The initial public offering (IPO) comes after Woolworths sold Dick Smith to private equity firm Anchorage for $94 million.
“We have been greatly encouraged by the institutional and retail shareholder response to the IPO and the strong demand for Shares,” said Dick Smith managing director and CEO Nick Abboud said.
“This has allowed us to assemble a high quality register of institutional Shareholders.
“However, we are 100 per cent aware of the responsibility we have to deliver on behalf of our Shareholders. They want to see us meet our objectives and to deliver sustainable profit and growth.”
Anchorage Capital Partners will remain as a key shareholder in Dick Smith by retaining an interest of 20 per cent. Dick Smith management will hold 11.5 per cent of the shares issued.
Dick Smith chairman and Anchorage founder Phil Cave paid tribute to the transformation program that Nick Abboud and the management team had driven at the company.
“Working with Nick has been a great partnership for us. A tremendous amount of work has gone into driving change and getting Dick Smith to the point that it can become a listed company,” he said.
“There is still more to do, of course, and Anchorage is retaining a significant Shareholding as a sign of our confidence in the company’s forecast financial performance.”