Berlin GSW May Raise €524M in IPO

BERLIN-Subscription opens today for shares in Germany’s biggest real estate IPO in several years, the Berlin-based GSW housing group. It could raise nearly €456m from the market after GSW last week received final approval for full flotation from the city government.

The shares will be offered in a range of €15 to €18.50. The current owners will offer some 15.3m shares – potentially raising €283 million–and another 9.3 million will be in the form of a capital increase. The owners may sell up 3.7 million in an additional allocation–meaning the total IPO cash raise could eventually reach €524 million. The price gives a company valuation of €670m to €790m, which compares to its reported net asset value of €950 million. The discount corresponds to the current average in listed real estate firms. Final deadline for subscriptions is May 6.