NESN

Manchester United IPO Sets Share Price Between $16 and $20 on New York Stock Exchange

Manchester United will give the public a chance to own part of the Premier League club after all, and potential investors now know how much they should expect to spend.

The Premier League club will launch its initial public offering (IPO) as early as next week, with shares selling between $16 and $20, Reuters reports.

United “expects to sell 16.67 million shares in its initial public offering at between $16 and $20 each,” the report says. “The offering is now expected to raise $383.3 million (243.9 million pounds) at the upper end of the price band.”

United filed registration papers with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in early July, but it did not specify how many shares it would sell or at what price. It hopes to raise up to $100 million (£64 million) in the IPO.

In 2005, Malcolm Glazer bought United for $1.47 billion (£936 million), but the leveraged buyout saddled the club with debt. Offering Class A shares will allow the Glazer family to retain a controlling interest in the club while using the cash infusion to help pay down some of the debt.

Last week, it was believed that the Glazers would halt the stock flotation because of market volatility, but they seem determined to move ahead with the scheme.

Have a question for Marcus Kwesi O’Mard? Send it to him via Twitter at @NESNsoccer, NESN Soccer’s Facebook page or send it here. He will pick a few questions to answer every week for his mailbag.