Shares of Ajax Engineering, a concrete equipment manufacturer backed by Kedaara Capital, have made a subdued debut on the stock market, in sync with broader market. The shares of Ajax Engineering list at ₹593 on the BSE, a discount of 5.7% over the initial public offering (IPO) price of ₹629, with a market capitalisation of ₹6,784.32 crore. On the NSE, the stock opened at ₹576 per share, down 8.4% over the issue price.

Post listing, Ajax Engineering share price dropped further by 10.1% to ₹565, while the counter touched a low of ₹566 on the NSE, eroding investors’ wealth by over ₹600 crore.

Meanwhile, benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty were down by 0.5% each, tracking mixed cues from global peers amid persistent concerns about U.S. tariffs and their impact on global trade and sustained selling by foreign institutional investors (FIIs).

The listing of Ajax Engineering IPO was in line with D-Street expectations as the stock was trading at discount in the grey market. Ahead of stock market debut, the shares were commanding a grey market premium (GMP) of minus ₹3, indicating listing to be around ₹626. The Ajax Engineering IPO GMP dropped sharply from its peak of ₹52 on February 9, the day issue opened for anchor investors.

The ₹1,269.35-crore IPO subscribed 6 times

Ajax Engineering raised ₹1,269.35 crore via IPO at a price band of ₹599-629 per share, valuing the company at around ₹7,200 crore. The issue was entirely an offer for sale (OFS) of 2.02 crore shares by promoters and existing shareholder. As part of the OFS, Kedaara Capital offloaded 74.37 lakh shares. The lost size 23 shares and in multiples thereafter.

The IPO, which opened for subscription between February 10-12, was subscribed 6.06 times on the last day of bidding, after receiving subdued response of the first two days. The public issue received 1.94 times bidding in the retail category, 13.04 times in qualified institutional buyer (QIB) segment, and 6.46 times booking in the non-institutional investor (NII) quota. The portion set aside for the employees of the company was booked 2.62 times.

As per the RHP filed with the SEBI, the company had reserved 50% of the shares in the public issue for QIB, 15% for NII, and remaining 35% for retail investors. A discount of ₹59 per equity share was offered to eligible employees bidding in the employee reservation portion.

Established in July 1992, Ajax Engineering is a prominent player in the concrete equipment industry, offering an extensive portfolio of products, services, and solutions across the concrete application value chain. As of September 30, 2024, the company had developed 141 concrete equipment variants for the value chain and sold over 29,800 units in India in the last ten years through four manufacturing and assembly plants in Karnataka, each catering to different product lines. The company has 51 dealerships across 23 states in India, providing 114 touchpoints, including 51 headquarters and 63 branches, 34 of which also serve as service centers.

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