Largest caterer in UAE gears up for IPO

ADNH Catering

• ADNH Catering to list 900m shares
• Market cap could be AED2.2bn
• Trading to start October 23

ADNH Catering, which claims to be the UAE’s largest provider of food services, has announced details of a float on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) that could raise up to $235 million.

Abu Dhabi National Hotels Company, the owner of ADNH Catering, will make available 900 million of its shares in the catering company, 40 percent of the total issued share capital.

The offer price range has been set at between AED0.91 ($0.25) and AED0.96 per share, implying a market capitalisation of AED2 billion ($558 million) to AED2.2 billion.

The sales of that 40 percent stake could raise as much as AED864 million.

The company plans to announce the final offer price on October 16, with shares expected to start trading on the ADX on October 23.

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ADNH Catering provides catering, cleaning, support services and personnel to private and public sector clients. The company claims a 28 percent market share in the UAE, and also has a presence in Saudi Arabia. It employs 18,000 people in the UAE, and nearly 1,000 via a joint venture in Saudi Arabia.

Clive Cowley, CEO of ADNH Catering, said: “We are excited to announce the start of the book building process for our IPO. With exposure to high-growth sectors such as healthcare and education, and an expanding geographic footprint in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, we also see significant potential in Saudi Arabia. We look forward to welcoming new shareholders to join in our journey.”

ADNH’s listing comes after a series of high-profile offerings on the ADX which have combined to add more than AED21 billion in value to the UAE’s stock market capitalisation in 2024.

Citi and FAB were appointed as joint global coordinators and joint bookrunners for ADNH Catering’s IPO, while ENBD and ADCB were named joint bookrunners.