The Princes Group, best known for its tinned tuna and Napolina pasta products, has launched its long-awaited stock market debut in London with a valuation of nearly £1.2bn, offering a welcome lift for the UK’s subdued IPO market.
The Liverpool-based food producer, which has operated for almost 150 years, priced its shares at the bottom of its target range, between £1.16bn and £1.24bn. Shares slipped by around 1% in early trading, despite strong anticipation around the float.
The company, now owned by the Italian family firm NewPrinces – a rebrand of Newlat, which bought Princes from Japan’s Mitsubishi for £700m last year – plans to raise around £400m through the sale of new shares to fuel expansion and investment.
Heritage and growth ambitions
Princes, which also owns Crisp ’n Dry cooking oil and produces Branston baked beans under licence, has a £2.1bn annual turnover. Its listing follows the group’s recent acquisition of Liverpool’s Royal Liver Building, where its head office is based, signalling its commitment to remaining rooted in the UK.
Chief executive Simon Harrison said the listing was “a reflection of both the company’s heritage and its ambitions for future growth”.
“As we look ahead, we remain focused on expanding our international footprint, deepening our category leadership, and delivering sustainable, long-term value for all our stakeholders,” he said.
A rare bright spot for London listings
The Princes float comes amid a small but noticeable revival in the London Stock Exchange (LSE) after a sluggish period for IPOs.
On Thursday, Shawbrook Group, a small business lender, debuted with a valuation of £1.92bn, marking the biggest London listing of the year so far. Its shares rose about 8% on opening day. Earlier this month, The Beauty Tech Group floated at a £300m valuation.
Several other major listings are also in the pipeline. Fintech giant Revolut is reportedly considering a dual listing in London and New York, while Unilever plans to spin off its ice-cream arm, The Magnum Ice Cream Company, with a triple listing in Amsterdam, New York, and London later this year.
Government welcomes ‘vote of confidence’
Business and Trade Secretary Peter Kyle, who attended Princes’ debut at the LSE, hailed the move as a “huge vote of confidence” in the government’s efforts to revitalise Britain’s capital markets.
“The LSE is a renowned global trading hub and Princes is a great British success story,” he said.
“With the FTSE 100 trading close to record highs, we’re making sure the UK is the best place in the world for businesses to start, scale, list and stay. I want this to be the start of more firms choosing London as their financial home.”
