Valvoline Inc. successfully launches IPO, fourth largest in the U.S. this year

After its trading debut last week, when it raised USD660 million in an initial public offering (IPO), Valvoline Inc.’s stock rose on Monday to end at USD24 per share in after-hours trading, giving the Lexington, Ky.-based lubricant company a market value of USD4.62 billion.

Valvoline sold 30 million shares, which was priced to the public at USD22.00 per share last week. The stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol VVV.

Valvoline’s share sale was the fourth largest IPO this year in the U.S., according to Bloomberg.

The company’s parent, Ashland Global Holdings Inc., will benefit from taking its business unit public. Valvoline expects to use the proceeds from the IPO to pay down existing debt. Once that’s achieved, Valvoline plans to borrow about USD980 million and transfer the proceeds to its parent company, according to the deal prospectus.

While Ashland will own about 85% of Valvoline after the IPO, according to the filing, it plans to spin off its stake to shareholders in a tax-free transaction after a 180-day lock-up period.

Valvoline posted net income of USD196.1 million in the year ended Sept. 30, 2015, on sales of USD1.97 billion. That compares to net income of USD173.4 million on USD2.04 billion in sales during the same period in 2014.