Playtika prices US$1.88 b IPO above target range: sources

[BENGALURU] Mobile gaming company Playtika Holding Corp on Thursday sold shares in its US initial public offering above its target range at US$27 each, a person familiar with the matter said.

Playtika had set a target price of between US$22 and US$24 apiece. The Israel-based company, which is owned by a Chinese investor group, had planned to sell 21.7 million shares with a further 47.8 million sold by existing investors, making the total offering worth around US$1.88 billion at US$27 per share.

The IPO, the biggest US listing in 2021 so far, values Playtika at US$11.1 billion. Playtika did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The source requested anonymity as the price was not yet public.

The IPO is the latest sign of robust investor demand for new stocks following a stellar 2020, which was the strongest IPO market in two decades, and a string of other listings this week which priced well relative to their targets.

In 2016, a group of Chinese investors including Giant Network Group and Yunfeng Capital, a private equity firm founded by Alibaba Group's Jack Ma, acquired Playtika from Caesars Interactive for US$4.4 billion.

Playtika's IPO comes as US-listed Chinese firms face tightened scrutiny and strict audit norms from US regulators and a week after the New York Stock Exchange decided to delist three Chinese telecom companies.

Founded in 2010, Playtika has more than 35 million monthly active users and its games include Bingo Blitz and Slotomania.

Playtika shares are scheduled to begin trading on the Nasdaq on Friday under the ticker symbol "PLTK."

Morgan Stanley, Credit Suisse, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, UBS and BofA Securities are the lead underwriters.

REUTERS