By Geoff Senescall
South Island firm Ryman Healthcare is looking to raise around $50 million through a sharemarket float this year as part of a planned move north.
The fresh funds will give a market capitalisation of around $200 million to the company, whose assets include hospitals, retirement villages and rest-homes.
This compares with the listed rest-homes company Metlifecare, which is capitalised at around $140 million.
Ryman's assets are in Invercargill, Dunedin, Christchurch and Wellington. The float cash would be used to expand further in Wellington and into Auckland to take advantage of an ageing population.
The population aged between 60 and 69 is expected to double in size between 1998 and 2031. For those older than 69, the number is expected to quadruple over that period.
Caring for the elderly is seen as a growth industry with New Zealand, which lags behind the rest of the world in use of retirement homes.
Residents of nursing homes and retirement villages in New Zealand account for 2.5 per cent of the population over 65. In Australia, they account for 6 per cent and in the United States 15 per cent.
Ryman was set up in 1984 by Kevin Hickman and John Ryder. In recent years, Direct Capital (now owned by the Canadian group Emerald Capital Partners) and the South Island Maori group Ngai Tahu have each bought a 25 per cent holding in the company.
Ryman builds and develops a rest-home site. It then sells the property but retains ownership and management of the home. To date, its growth has been organic rather than by acquisitions.
Ryman is expected to register its prospectus in May and list in June. It is understood that Merrill Lynch is the lead manager.
Unlike Contact Energy, the issue will be marketed only in New Zealand.
Ryman eyes $50m float
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