REIT DuPont Fabros Technology up in market debut
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Shares of real estate investment trust DuPont Fabros Technology Inc (DFT.N)jumped on Friday, a day after an initial public offering that priced at the top of a forecast range.
Shares rose to $23.16 in early trading on the New York Stock Exchange, a 10.2 percent jump, and closed up 8 percent at
$22.71.
On Thursday, the Washington, D.C. company, which manages and leases data centers to technology firms including Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O), Yahoo Inc (YHOO.O) and Google Inc (GOOG.O), priced its 30.5 million share offering at $21 per share, compared with a forecast range of $19 to $21, according to an underwriter.
The IPO is the largest U.S. IPO by a REIT year-to-date, and ranks as the seventh largest ever, according to data tracker Dealogic.
Based on its offering price, the company has an initial market capitalization of about $650 million.
The company's largest shareholders are its chairman, Lammot du Pont, and Chief Executive Hossein Fateh, according to an amended filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
The company plans to use proceeds of the offering to pay down debt, it said in an amended filing with the SEC.
Underwriters, led by Lehman Brothers and UBS Investment Bank, have the option to purchase an additional 4.58 million shares to cover overallotments.
(Reporting by Lilla Zuill)
