By Echo Wang
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Amer Sports’ growing reliance on China for its revenue is weighing on the appetite of those considering buying into the sporting equipment maker’s $1.8 billion U.S. initial public offering (IPO), four people involved in the process told Reuters.
The company behind Arc’teryx outdoor apparel, Salomon sporting goods and Wilson tennis gear generated 19.4% of its sales in China in the first nine months of 2023, up from 8.3% in 2020, according to its IPO prospectus.
Most of the company’s sales come from the Americas and Europe, and while revenue in these regions has been growing, sales in China have been rising much faster. They were up 68% in the first nine months of 2023 compared to the corresponding period in 2022, the prospectus shows.
The sources, who requested anonymity to discuss the progress of the IPO, said that, despite this success, some potential investors have expressed concerns about Amer Sports’ fortunes intertwining with China’s economy.
A spiraling property crisis and a local government debt crunch has driven many investors to reduce their exposure to China.
Amer Sports has also warned investors in its IPO prospectus that escalating trade tensions could in the future lead to tariffs or other curbs on its ability to sell goods in the U.S. that it makes or sources in China.
While Amer Sports’ IPO book is oversubscribed and the offering is not in jeopardy, the softening in investor demand could push the company to play it safe and price the offering at the bottom or middle of its $16 to $18 per share indicated range, the sources said, cautioning that no decision has been taken. Even at the bottom of the range, the IPO would value Amer Sports at approximately $8 billion.
Amer Sports did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The IPO is scheduled to price on Wednesday evening in New York, with the shares debuting on the New York Stock Exchange on Thursday.
Founded in Helsinki in 1950, Amer Sports was acquired by a consortium of primarily Chinese firms in 2019 for 4.6 billion euros ($5 billion). The biggest shareholder, with a 56% stake, is Anta Sports, a Chinese athletic clothing manufacturer with aspirations to take on Western rivals such as Nike and Adidas.
Under Anta’s ownership, Amer Sports’ ties to China have grown. The company says in its IPO prospectus it now has key suppliers and manufacturing facilities in China, and that about 33% of its products sourced from third-party suppliers were manufactured in the country in 2022.
Some of the investors have also expressed that the company’s Salomon and Wilson brands are showing lower margins and slower growth than Arc’teryx, the sources said. While Arc’teryx sales rose 65% in the first nine months of 2023, Salomon and Wilson sales rose 35% and 10%, respectively, the prospectus shows.
Amer Sports represents a major test for the U.S. IPO market in 2024 after a sizeable but smaller company, BrightSpring Health Services, priced its $633 million offering last week below its indicated range. The shares of the healthcare services firm, which is owned by private equity firm KKR, have since been trading below their discounted IPO price.
Social media platform Reddit is planning to list in New York in March, Reuters reported last week, in one of 2024’s most-anticipated listings.
(Reporting by Echo Wang in New York; Editing by Greg Roumeliotis and Lincoln Feast.)
