Aether Industries IPO: Check issue size, price band, company financials

Specialty chemical manufacturer Aether Industries' initial public offering (IPO) hit the primary markets today i.e. May 24. Aether Industries is aiming to raise close to ₹808 crore through the IPO, which will close on May 26. The IPO comprises a fresh issue worth ₹627 crore and an offer for sale of up to 2,820,000 equity shares (including an anchor portion of 37,42,495 shares) worth ₹181.04 crore.

The size of the fresh issue of equity shares aggregating up to ₹757.7 crore has been reduced to ₹627 crore under the pre-IPO placement, the draft red herring prospectus filed by the company shows.

The price band for the public issue has been fixed at ₹610-₹642 at the face value of ₹10 each. The bid lot has been fixed 23 equity shares and in multiples thereof at the equal number of minimum order quantity. The maximum subscription amount for a retail investor has been fixed at ₹2 lakh, while the maximum subscription amount for employees has been fixed at ₹5 lakh.

QIB investors can bid for the maximum quantity of 92,38,962 equity shares in a multiple of 23 equity shares, while NIB investors can bid for 64,90,738 equity shares in a multiple of 23 apiece.

Around 37,42,495 shares were allocated to anchor investors, garnering around ₹240.2 crore for the company. Of the total allocation of 37,42,495 equity shares to the anchor investors, 18,22,313 equity shares (i.e. 48.69% of the total anchor investors allocation) have been allocated to 6 mutual funds that applied through a total of 15 schemes.

The company's non-core assets as of December 31, 2021, stood at over ₹292 crore, while its current assets are worth ₹417 crore, totalling ₹709.5 crore. The company's total equity as of December 31, 2021, stood at ₹360 crore, while its liabilities were ₹349.2 crore. Its revenue during the period stood at ₹449.3 crore, while its expenses were at over ₹338 crore. Profit for the nine months ending December 31, 2021, stood at ₹82.9 crore.

Aether Industries, incorporated in 2013, is a speciality chemical manufacturer in India that focuses on producing intermediates and speciality chemicals involving complex and differentiated chemistry and technology core competencies. The company says it has developed eight chemistry competencies.

India accounted for an around 4% market share in the global chemicals market in 2020. According to the F&S report, the global chemicals market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 6.2% from $5,027 billion in 2020 to $6,780 billion by CY 2025. During this period, the Asia Pacific chemicals market is expected to grow at the fastest rate of 7-8%. The report says while the Indian chemicals industry was valued at $186 billion in CY 2020, it's expected to grow 12.2% to $330 billion in 2025. In CY 2020, the Indian chemical industry contributed around 6.6% of the national GDP and 15-17% to India’s manufacturing sector.

HDFC Bank Ltd and Kotak Mahindra Capital Company Ltd are the book-running lead managers for the company IPO, while Axis Bank Ltd, HDFC Bank Ltd and Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd are the sponsor banks.