Shares in Queensland rail-freight business QR National traded strongly on their first day as an ASX-listed stock in what was Australia's biggest share float since Telstra.The Queensland government sold a 60% stake in the company over the weekend for A$4.6
Shares in Queensland rail-freight business QR National traded strongly on their first day as an ASX-listed stock in what was Australia’s biggest share float since Telstra.
The Queensland government sold a 60% stake in the company over the weekend for A$4.6 billion.
The price to institutions was A$2.55 a share, which was at the lower end of the float’s $A2.50 to $A3.00 indicative range.
Retail investors paid $A2.45 a share. QR National initially traded at $A2.54 but quickly shot up to $A2.68 in the first hour.
The company is heavily involved in serving the coal mining industry and is seen as an entry point for investors wanting to gain exposure to Australia’s resource sector.
The Queensland government will retain a 34% stake in QR National until at least August 2012. Much of the interest in QR National came from offshore investors.
“It’s off to a very good start, and it appears that there is a good level of institutional demand there at an early stage,” George Boubouras at UBS, which was a joint lead manager for the float, said.
“It will have caught a lot of people out by more than 5% in its first hour,” he said.
