Spirit Airlines Prices IPO at Low End of Range

Spirit Airlines, which is owned by private equity firms Indigo Partners and Oaktree Capital Management, will raise $187.2 million in its initial public offering, nearly 42% less than it had initially expected, Reuters reported. Florida-based Spirit said it priced its offering of 15.6 million shares at $12.00 a share. The airline had expected to sell the shares between $12-$13 a share, Reuters wrote. Indigo Partners and Oaktree will own 72% of the airline after the offering.

(Reuters) – U.S. carrier Spirit Airlines will raise $187.2 million in its initial public offering, nearly 42 percent less than it had initially expected, after it sold its shares at the low end of their range.

In a regulatory filing, Florida-based Spirit said it priced its offering of 15.6 million shares at $12.00 a share. The airline had expected to sell the shares between $12-$13 a share.

On Wednesday, Spirit, which is owned by private equity firms Indigo Partners and Oaktree Capital Management, cut the number of shares it would offer and their price, signifying waning investor interest.

Indigo Partners and Oaktree will own 72 percent of the airline after the offering.

Citigroup Global Markets and Morgan Stanley are lead underwriters for the offering, which will see Spirit list its shares on NASDAQ under the “SAVE” symbol.

Spirit, which calls itself an “ultra low-cost” carrier, operates more than 150 flights a day, but carries less than 1 percent of U.S. air passenger traffic. (Reporting by Jochelle Mendonca; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)