The IPO of Axa Equitable at a difficult time for the sector

NEW YORK (IFR) – The initial public offering (IPO) of AXA Equitable, the u.s. subsidiary of life insurance and asset management of Axa (PA:AXAF), is inscribed in a context of distrust vis-à-vis the sector that has recently shown a weak performance.

The company must complete its order book (the”book-building”) on Tuesday, with a view to the fixing of the price on Wednesday. But the weakness of the insurance sector on Wall Strret weighs on the demand for securities, and may cause him to set an introductory price lower than the indicative range of 24 to 27 dollars, according to sources from market on the side of the buyers.

“The real debate is to know what amount to allocate to a sector that has been too unpredictable over the last six to nine months,” said a banker close to the transaction.

The publications of results from one week of insurance companies like Unum, Prudential Financial (LON:PRU), MetLife, Lincoln Financial, and Brighthouse Financial have done nothing to enhance “belief” in this sector, ” he adds.

Axa has engaged the end of April the Stock market flotation of its u.s. subsidiary, which it will offer investors 137,25 million shares, representing 24.5% of the share capital.

(Anthony Hughes, Juliette Rouillon for the French service)