Retail food chain Albertsons (NYSE: ABS) is set to launch its initial public offering later this week. Exchange traded fund investors may also see the supermarket pop up in some IPO- and eventually consumer staples-related ETFs.
Albertsons is set to launch its IPO around October 14 at $23 to $26 per share for an equity valuation of $12.4 billion, along with $10.7 billion of post-IPO debt, reports Tim Mullaney for CNBC.
The Albertsons deal proposes a valuation lower than Kroger (NYSE: KR) but higher than peers like Delhaize and Koninklijke Ahold N.V., according to Linda Killian, a co-manager of Renaissance’s IPO-focused exchange traded fund.
The Albertsons retailer is now the second-largest supermarket chain in the U.S., behind Kroger CO., after the acquisition of Safeway in 2014. Additionally, Albertsons operates under 18 brands, including Jewel-Osco, Shaw’s Amigos and Tom Thumb, MarketWatch reports.
For ETF investors, the new stock could show up in IPO-related ETFs, including the First Trust US IPO Index Fund (NYSEArca: FPX) and Renaissance IPO ETF (NYSEArca: IPO).
FPX does not limit its holdings to true IPOs. The ETF can hold spin-offs and the ETF’s holdings can remain in the fund for 1,000 days after their IPOs. The ETF, though, is not rushing to add the newest IPOs. The underlying index is reconstituted and adjusted quarterly.
IPO, on the other hand, can add new companies as fast as the fifth day of trading, or upon quarterly review. Components are then removed after two years when the IPOs are considered seasoned stocks.
However, it should be noted that there is no guarantee the two IPO-related ETFs may pick up Albertsons.
Additionally, looking further out, Albertsons could end up in consumer staples sector-related ETFs as it competes with Krogers. For instance, the KR is the largest holding of PowerShares Dynamic Food & Beverage Portfolio (NYSEArca: PBJ) at 5.2% and the third largest component of PowerShares Dynamic Retail Portfolio (NYSEArca: PMR) at 5.4%.
For more information on the consumer sector, visit our consumer staples category.
Max Chen contributed to this article.