China’s largest diary producer Yili Group is planning to buy a stake in a Hong Kong-listed rival for around $680 million, doubling down on a high-growth sector that has been beset by multiple scandals.
The Chinese raw milk producer raises $426 million at a valuation of 17 times forward earnings, while investors look ahead to the larger offerings from Cinda Asset Management and Qinhuangdao Port due next week.
Hospital operator Phoenix Healthcare will be the latest addition to a long line of listing hopefuls in Hong Kong when it kicks off an IPO of up to $191 million on Thursday.
Modern Dairy’s $571 million IPO is fully covered already, despite the fact that two recently listed Chinese milk companies are trading at least 12% below their IPO prices.