Covestro reveals details of share prices and sales

Polymers producer, Covestro AG (formerly BayerMaterialScience), is planning its stock market flotation at the beginning of October 2015.

By way of a capital increase, the company will offer between 70.4 million and 94.3 million new shares at an issue price of between EUR 26.50 and EUR 35.50 from September 21 until most likely October 1, 2015.

Covestro is hoping for gross proceeds of about EUR 2.5 billion. The number of shares to be issued in the Initial Public Offering (IPO) will depend on the issue price.

The issue price will be set on the basis of a bookbuilding process and the first listing on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange is planned for October 2.

The new shares are being offered publicly in Germany and Luxembourg to private and institutional investors, as well as private placements in other countries.

The details of the offering have been defined by Covestro and Bayer AG as a shareholder together with Deutsche Bank and Morgan Stanley, the two joint global coordinators for the transaction.

“We have prepared intensively for our independence and think our company is ready for listing. After the IPO, we will be able to deploy our strengths more rapidly, effectively and flexibly and continue building on our competitive advantages,” explained Covestro CEO Patrick Thomas.

Covestro will use the proceeds from the IPO primarily to repay its debt to Bayer and thus establish its target capital structure.

“In the mid-term, we are forecasting further growth in sales and adjusted EBITDA,” went on Thomas. “As the developer and manufacturer of components for high-tech plastics, coatings, adhesives and sealants, we have a global footprint. For decades, we have been supplying many thousands of customers in the automotive, construction and electronics industries and in other key segments.”

Detailed information about the offering is contained in Covestro’s stock market prospectus, which was today approved by the German Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin). The document will be made available on the Covestro website at www.covestro.com on the evening of September 18.