IPO values coffee maker JDE Peet's at $17.3bln

IPO values coffee maker JDE Peet's at $17.3bln

IPOs are rare right now, but coffee maker JDE Peet's saw its Friday offer snapped up by investors.

Julian Satterthwaite reports.

It’s a real rarity right now: a major share sale.

Coffee maker JDE Peet’s conducted an IPO Friday (May 29) on Amsterdam's Euronext exchange.

The offering valued it at 17.3 billion dollars.

And the decision to go public in these times of turmoil proved a winning bet, with investors starved of similar opportunities.

The shares surged 13% in early trade.

Big-name investors including George Soros’s Quantum Partners were among those to jump on the chance.

High demand meant bankers were able to wrap up the offer process in two weeks, not the usual month.

JDE is the world’s number two maker of packaged coffee, competing with the likes of Nestle.

Its brands include Douwe Egberts and Jacobs.

It also operates U.S. coffee chain Peet’s.

Friday’s sale allowed the firm to raise 700 million euros, which it will use to pay down debt.

Major JDE shareholders including Mondelez sold additional stock, bringing the total to 2.25 billion euros.