Air Astana aims to land $962 million valuation in float

LONDON (Reuters) -Kazakhstan's Air Astana on Monday set the price range for joint stock exchange listings in the UK and its home market, preparing the ground for a float that would boost London's sluggish IPO market.

The offering is aiming to drum up $300 million, of which $120 million will be raised by the company. Bookrunners on the deal said on Monday evening that the books had been covered.

Air Astana is aiming for a market valuation of between $770 million and $962 million through the float, the company said.

The listing, first announced earlier in January, will enable Kazakhstan's sovereign wealth fund and British defence giant BAE Systems to reduce their current stakes in the airline.

Central Asian airlines such as Air Astana have benefited from the closure of Russian airspace, helping boost passenger numbers and revenues for the region's carriers.

"As one of the fast-growing airline groups, we firmly believe that Air Astana represents an attractive investment proposition," said CEO Peter Foster, adding that proceeds of the initial public offering would go towards growth opportunities.

The price range for the offering of new and existing shares on the London Stock Exchange and Kazakhstan's AIX and KASE markets has been set between $8.50 to $11.00 per depository receipt and $2.13 to $2.75 per share.

The final price will be determined by a bookbuilding process and is expected to be announced around Feb. 9, it added, with trading set to commence in London on Feb. 14 and in Kazakhstan on Feb. 15.

Air Astana flies 49 aircraft. It carried 7 million passengers and posted operating profit of $149 million in 2022.

The listing will be a windfall for BAE depending on how much of its 49% stake it sells.

London's IPO market has struggled in recent years, hurt by Britain's departure from the European Union, and companies opting to list in the United States.

(Reporting by Iain WithersEditing by David Goodman, Kirsten Donovan and Sharon Singleton)