Daehan Shipbuilding, a corporation specializing in large-scale vessels, is garnering significant interest among companies planning initial public offerings (IPOs) in the second half of the year; however, the subscription rate for employee stock ownership plans is reportedly low. The subscription rate of employees who are well-acquainted with the company's situation serves as a barometer for future stock price outlook.
According to investment banking (IB) industry sources on the 23rd, the subscription rate for Daehan Shipbuilding's employee stock ownership plan reached 96.7% for unsold shares. Although the allotment for the employee stock ownership plan was 2 million shares, accounting for 20% of the total offering, only 65,385 shares were subscribed.
The low subscription rate for the employee stock ownership plan raises concerns that investor sentiment may weaken. If employees who cannot sell their shares for a year after the listing choose not to participate in the subscription, it could foster negative perceptions about the company's outlook.
While the subscription scale is large relative to employees' salaries, the lack of company-level support such as interest-free loans also seems to be a reason for the low subscription rate. The average salary of Daehan Shipbuilding employees is 60 million won, while the subscription amount per person, based on the upper price of the public offering, is 188 million won.
A representative from Daehan Shipbuilding noted, "With fewer employees compared to the allocated number, we expected the subscription rate to be low," adding, "The conservative investment tendency of employees is also likely reflected in this." He further mentioned, "We did not provide separate interest-free loans or policy support."
Daehan Shipbuilding conducted demand forecasting for institutional investors from the 11th to the 17th. A total of 2,106 domestic and international institutions participated, requesting a total of 1.516132 billion shares. The simple competition rate was 275.7 to 1, with the offering amount approximately 500 billion won, and the market capitalization post-listing projected to be around 1.9263 trillion won. 99.9% of the total participation allotment (including prices not specified) offered prices above 50,000 won, which is the upper range of the public offering price.
Daehan Shipbuilding has concluded the subscription and aims to be listed on the KOSDAQ market on the 1st of next month. KB Securities and NH Investment & Securities are acting as joint lead managers, with Shinyoung Securities participating as a co-manager.