UBS wins Auckland International Airport beauty parade
UBS’ New Zealand desk had nabbed the mandate to sell Auckland Council’s 7 per cent holding in Auckland International Airport, beating rival banks who have been positioning for the trade for several months.
The council appointed UBS as an advisor on Tuesday, after it approved a sell-down of 7 per cent of its 18 per cent holding to pay down debts in late June. Flagstaff Partners has been advising the seller and would continue to oversee execution.
Auckland International Airport is New Zealand’s largest, and has been recovering from border closures triggered by the pandemic. Russell Hendry
With UBS anointed, investors would be hoping for a roughly $NZ880 million ($813 million) block of Auckland Airport shares to hit their screens in the coming weeks. But sources said no decision had been made on when and how UBS would sell the shares – including if it would be strategic or in a block trade to fundies.
Auckland is New Zealand’s largest airport and has been recovering from border closures triggered by the pandemic. It processed 9.6 million domestic passengers in the 2019 financial year, which had only recovered to 6.9 million passengers for the year ending December 31. (Its guidance is for a return to pre-pandemic levels in 2025).
Its $287.8 million first-half revenue was about 78 per cent of pre-pandemic levels, while the underlying after-tax profit was $67.9 million.
The stock has followed a similar trajectory on the ASX. It plunged to $4.87 when borders were closed in March 2020, and has since recovered to $7.90.
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