Sources: Stada delays listing until September

Private equity funds that own German drugmaker Stada Arzneimittel AG have decided to postpone its planned initial public offering (IPO) until September, sources cited by Bloomberg said.

Bain Capital and Cinven decided to postpone the listing due to recent market volatility, after initially planning to launch the sale of shares last week, the sources said. The discussions are ongoing, and details of Stada's listing plans could change further, the sources said. Representatives for Bain, Cinven and Stada declined to comment on the information published by Bloomberg.

Last month, Stada Chief Executive Peter Goldschmidt said in an interview with Bloomberg that he had seen "huge" interest in the company during meetings he had with about 60 investors.

Stada was aiming to list in April, after Easter, according to people familiar with the matter. Goldschmidt declined to comment on a specific listing timeline, but said: "We are growing faster than most of our peers in the industry and we have a very attractive financial profile." The company official also said Stada is on track to achieve revenue of 930 million to 990 million euros before special items in 2025 and revenue of 4.25 billion to 4.4 billion euros, after meeting its targets for the previous year. Stada sells generic drugs, consumer health products and specialty pharmaceuticals. The company plans to reduce its debt by about 3 billion euros, from its current level of 5.6 billion euros, Goldschmidt said. The debt reduction will come from its owners Bain Capital and Cinven, as well as through the issuance of new shares. Goldschmidt said Bain and Cinven do not intend to offer a capital injection financed by a margin loan and secured by Stada shares.

The planned sale of Stada shares on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange was expected to raise about 1.5 billion euros, according to people familiar with the matter. If it goes through, it would be one of the largest healthcare deals in Europe in recent years and would end a protracted effort by private equity firms Bain and Cinven to sell or list the business. Goldschmidt declined to provide figures for the IPO.

Experts say Stada's listing in April could be a catalyst for a revival in the European IPO market.