spacetoday.net: Eutelsat revives IPO plans

Posted: Tue, Nov 29, 2005, 6:02 AM ET (1102 GMT)
European satellite operator Eutelsat has reinstated its plans for an initial public offering of stock, with shares to be traded on the open market by the end of this week. The company plans to raise €860 million (US$1.01 billion) in the share sale, with shares to begin trading on the Euronext exchange by Friday afternoon. The company canceled an earlier IPO plan a month ago, citing weakness in the financial markets in Europe and the US at the time. The new IPO will feature a lower price for the company's shares, €11.75-12.75, than the previous effort; in addition, existing shareholders, including a number of investment firms, will not sell their shares in this IPO, unlike the previous one.