IBDaily. 5 IPOs On Deck Next Week: Cruise Ships And Energy LPs
The IPO calendar is starting the New Year much like it ended the last one: with a lot of energy companies and financial vehicles.
The one exception to the pattern is Norwegian Cruise Line, the third-largest cruise-ship operator in North America behind Carnival ( CCL ) and Royal Caribbean ( RCL ). The company was co-founded by a Norwegian in 1966 but is based in Florida, and most of its shares are now owned by Star Cruises owner Genting Hong Kong and private equity group Apollo Global Management ( APO ).
The cruise line's last five years of financials show slow but steady revenue growth and profitability, with only the recessionary year of 2008 recording an operating loss. In the nine months ended Sept. 30, revenue rose 2.4% from the year-earlier period, to $1.77 billion, while net income rose 30% to $167 million. The company is more than $2 billion in debt, however, and most of the roughly $400 million in proceeds will go toward paying its creditors and shareholders
The firm plans to price on Jan. 17 at $16 to $18 a share, under the ticker NCLH.
Meanwhile, telecom provider Cincinnati Bell ( CBB ) is planning to spin off its data centers in the form of a REIT called CyrusOne. The REIT structure has gained renewed popularity in this field lately, with cellphone tower operators American Tower ( AMT ) converting to it a year ago and SBA Communications ( SBAC ) working on such a switch. CyrusOne will own some 23 data centers in the South and Midwest, drawing about $85 million in annual rent. The company plans to raise about $280 million under the ticker CONE.
As IBD recently reported , energy IPOs were popular last quarter, so it's not surprising that they make up the rest of this week's list. Coal producer SunCoke Energy ( SXC ), which went public in July 2011, is planning an encore with its LP affiliate SunCoke Energy Partners, which will own an interest in two cokemaking facilities in Ohio. It expects to raise $270 million under the ticker SXCP. Investors might also get a sense of deja vu when CVR Refining LP starts trading as CVRR. Its parent, oil refiner CVR Energy ( CVI ), went public in 2007, and in 2011 it successfully spun off its nitrogen fertilizer business as CVR Partners ( UAN ).
A new face will be USA Compression Partners, a Texas-based provider of natural-gas compression services. It will also go public in LP form with its general partner remaining private. It plans to raise $200 million and trade as USAC
