AO World shares rise after market debut

26th Feb 2014 12:19

Online washing machine and household gadget retailer AO World made a splash in its first day of trading on the London Stock Exchange.The group, which announced an offer price of 285p, was trading at around 400p in early afternoon trading in London, valuing it at nearly £1.7bn.The value of shares sold by the original owners of the business is expected to be £363m.Founder and Chief Executive John Roberts (pictured) reduced his stake of about 40% to 28.6% in the sale, netting him about £137m and giving him a remaining holding worth about £486m at the group's current market valuation. AO expects to raise £60m from the share sale.Roberts said: "I'm delighted our initial public offering has been so well received by investors. They have understood our business model and our potential. We welcome them as shareholders."AO, whose rivals include the supermarkets and Currys and PC World owner Dixons, plans to improve its ranges with moves into new areas such as TVs.It is also considering expanding into mainland Europe with its first target expected to be Germany.PW