((Automated translation by Reuters, please see disclaimer https://bit.ly/rtrsauto))
(Adding background on Zeekr) by Echo Wang
Chinese electric vehicle maker Zeekr Intelligent Technology ZK.N priced its U.S. initial public offering (IPO) at the top of its listed range on Thursday, raising $441 million, a person said. made the file.
Zeekr, which is the premium brand of Chinese automaker Geely, raised the price of its IPO to sell 21 million American Depositary Shares at $21 per share, said the Source, who requested anonymity. because these discussions are confidential.
The IPO gives Zeekr a fully diluted value, which includes securities such as options and restricted stock units, of $5.5 billion. On an undiluted basis, the IPO values the company at approximately $5.1 billion.
The company closed investor orders a day early after its IPO was oversubscribed, Reuters reported on Tuesday.
Zeekr did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Strong demand for Zeekr’s IPO comes amid a fierce price war for electric vehicles in China, which has led to falling profits, pushing a number of companies to continue their expansion in outside China, where they can charge more and increase their margins.
Zeekr is one of several Chinese automakers, including BYD 002594.SZ, SAIC 600104.SS and Great Wall Motor
601633.SS , which have set their sights on Europe, launching electric models in a bid to compete with traditional European automakers on their home turf.
BYD and state-backed Chery have already announced plans to build cars in Europe.
Although Zeekr successfully completed its U.S. IPO, its valuation represents a drop from the $13 billion it reached last year when it raised $750 million from new investors and existing investors.
Zeekr delivered its first vehicle in October 2021. As of December 31, the company has delivered a total of approximately 196,633 cars, mainly in China.
Year-to-date, Zeekr’s shipments have outpaced those of its closest competitors. Zeekr delivered 49,148 vehicles in the first four months ending April 30, while Xpeng delivered 31,214 units and Nio 45,673 cars in the same period, according to regulatory filings and press releases.
Zeekr’s prospectus reports an increase in total revenue to 51.67 billion yuan ($7.3 billion) in 2023, from 31.9 billion a year earlier. However, its operating loss increased from 7.15 billion to 8.18 billion yuan.
Zeekr’s listing is the largest Chinese IPO in the United States since 2021, when LianBio listed its shares in New York. Last year, Zeekr put its IPO plans on hold, as Reuters reported at .
The number of Chinese companies that have sought to go public in the United States in recent years has plummeted, after Chinese ride-hailing giant Didi Global was forced to delist its shares following a negative reaction from Chinese regulatory authorities.
In 2023, Chinese IPOs raised a total of $668 million, up from $13.7 billion in 2020, according to Dealogic data. Ahead of Zeekr’s IPO, Chinese companies raised $52 million through U.S. stock sales this year.
Zeekr will list its shares on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “ZK” on Friday. Lead investors including Geely subscribed to up to $349.1 million worth of shares sold.
Goldman Sachs GS.N, Morgan Stanley MS.N, Bank of America
BAC.N and CICC 3908.HK are the main underwriters of the offering.
