AB InBev Asia Unit May Price Its $9.8b HK IPO Towards Bottom

Budweiser Brewing Company APAC Ltd., the Asia Pacific unit of Anheuser-Busch InBev NV, is guiding potential investors that it could price its $9.8 billion Hong Kong initial public offering toward the low end of a marketed range.

Budweiser Brewing will stop taking orders from investors in Asia and Europe at 5p.m. in each region and at noon New York time, according to a message communicated to fund managers Thursday. The company is offering 1.63 billion shares at HK$40 to HK$47 each. The final price hasn’t been set yet and the pricing level is subject to change.

The order books have been oversubscribed and have continued to grow steadily, with orders from investors, the message shows. Investors including long-only and North America pension funds have placed orders, according to the message.

The unit of the world’s biggest brewer is on track to price its offering on July 11 U.S. time, the message said. A representative for the company declined to comment.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Morgan Stanley are joint sponsors for the Hong Kong share sale. Trading is expected to start on July 19.

Bloomberg