UK bookmaker Gala Coral is preparing to float on the stock market later this year, according to the Financial Times newspaper.
The flotation is planned for October if the company considers the market conditions to be favourable after the UK general election in May, the report said, citing a person familiar with the matter.
Gala Coral is being advised by Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley, although the investment bankers have not been formally appointed to lead an IPO yet.
A flotation could value the company at about £2 billion (€2.7 billion/$3.1 billion), the newspaper added.
The company is owned by several private equity firms, including Apollo Global Management, Cerberus Capital Management, Anchorage Capital Partners and Park Square Capital.
Gala Coral, with more than 1,800 betting shops, is the UK’s third largest bookmaker behind William Hill and Ladbrokes.
The company generated earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation of £263.9 million from turnover of £1.24 billion in the 12 months through to September 27.
Earlier this month, the company confirmed significant year-on-year growth in the first quarter of the 2014-15 financial year, with gross profit increasing by 5% to £267 million.
source : www.igamingbusiness.com
