Carlyle prices IPO

The Carlyle Group has priced its common shares in the $23 to $25 range for its upcoming initial public offering, according to documents filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission Monday. Carlyle has yet to set a date for its initial public offering.  

Carlyle expects to raise between $695 million and $800 million in the float, according to the filing. The firm will offer around 10 percent of its stock in the IPO. 

Carlyle’s offering would follow up a disappointing performance from distressed debt specialist Oaktree Capital Management, which sold just 8.84 million shares in its IPO on the New York Stock Exchange last week. The firm fell short of expectations that it would sell around 11.3 million shares and raised only $387 million through the offering, considerably less than the $517 million it had anticipated based on regulatory filings submitted in March. The firm also priced at the bottom of its range at $43 per share. 

Carlyle will offer 30.5 million common shares on the NASDAQ stock exchange under the symbol “CG”, including 4.575 million units that are subject to an underwriters’ option to purchase additional units. 

Underwriters include JP Morgan, Citigroup, Credit Suisse, BofA Merrill Lynch, Barclays, Deutsche Bank Securities, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, UBS Investment Bank, ICBC International and Sandler O’Neill and Partners. 

The firm will use around $618.1 million of proceeds to repay debt on its revolving credit facility, $40 million to pay down debt associated with a loan used to acquire wealth manager Claren Road and the remainder for general corporate purposes, according to the filing. 

The firm had around $147 billion in assets under management as of 31 December. 

Carlyle is one of several private equity firms to hit the public market in recent years. The Blackstone Group led the way when it raised $4.1 billion through its IPO in 2007. Kohlberg Kravis Roberts floated its offering in 2010, and Apollo Global Management filed last March.