Techno Drug’s IPO subscription begin June 9

The initial public offering (IPO) subscription of Techno Drugs is set to open June 9, aiming to raise Tk 1.0 billion from the stock market under the book-building method.

The IPO subscription of the company will continue until June 13, according to its IPO prospectus published on Thursday.

The cut-off price of its IPO shares was fixed at Tk 34 through electronic bidding between April 21  and April 24 --- a requirement for going public under the book-building method.

The general investors, including non-resident Bangladeshis, however, will get IPO shares at a 30 per cent discount on the cut-off price, meaning they will be able to buy at Tk 24 each.

Techno Drugs received regulatory approval from the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) on March 7 for raising Tk 1.0 billion from the primary market.

With the IPO proceeds, the drug maker will purchase new machinery at an expense of Tk 270 million, expand its existing factory in Narsingdi at Tk 250 million, repay Tk 300 million against bank loans and build a new production unit in Gazipur at Tk 150 million. The remaining Tk 30 million is set aside for IPO expenses.

Imperial Capital and EBL Investments are acting as issue manager of the company’s IPO process.

Techno Drugs’ sales dropped 45 per cent year-on-year to Tk 2.73 billion in FY23 while profit plunged 59 per cent to Tk 195.5 million.

Accordingly, the earnings per share stood at Tk 2.08 for FY23, down from Tk 5.10 a year ago. Its net asset value per share with a revaluation surplus was Tk 27.78 while the asset value stands at Tk 22.57 per share without the revaluation surplus as of June 2023.

Techno Drugs will not be able to declare dividends before the listing, according to the regulator.

Established in 2009, the drug maker produces human and veterinary medicines and sells them both at home and abroad.

Techno Drugs also claims that it pioneered the production of oncology medicines in Bangladesh.

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