(Bloomberg) -- StandardAero Inc., a Carlyle Group Inc.-backed aircraft maintenance services provider is weighing pricing its initial public offering above a marketed range, according to people familiar with the matter.
The size of the deal is likely to be increased again, as there have been offers for at least 10 times the number of available shares, the people said, asking not to be identified as the information isn’t public.
The company had marketed 53.25 million shares, raising the size from 46.5 million previously, according to an earlier filing. Affiliates of Carlyle and Singaporean sovereign wealth investor GIC Pte are offering 6.75 million shares, according to the filing. Shares were marketed for $20 to $23 each.
No final decisions have been made and the price and number of shares could still change, the people said. Reuters reported earlier that StandardAero’s IPO was close to pricing at $24 apiece. A representative for Carlyle declined to comment. A StandardAero spokesperson didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.
Carlyle had explored a potential sale for StandardAero but decided to pursue an IPO because bids valued the company below what it’s expected to reach in a listing, Bloomberg News reported in September.
Funds affiliated with Blackrock Inc., Janus Henderson Group Plc and Norway’s $1.8 trillion sovereign wealth fund separately indicated their interest in buying as much as $275 million worth of shares at the IPO price, the filing shows.
StandardAero is the largest pure-play provider of aerospace engine after-market services for fixed and rotary wing aircraft, serving the commercial, military and business aviation end markets, according to its filing. Customers include GE Aerospace, Honeywell International Inc. and Rolls-Royce Holdings Plc.
The Scottsdale, Arizona-based company had a profit through the first half of the year, reversing earlier annual losses, according to the filing. For the first half of the year, StandardAero had net income of $8.6 million on revenue of $2.6 billion. That compared with a loss of about $12.6 million on $2.3 billion in revenue during the same period in 2023.
Carlyle completed its purchase of StandardAero from Veritas in 2019. A statement at the time didn’t disclose financial terms of the deal. Carlyle will continue to control the company after the IPO, according to the filing.
JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Morgan Stanley are leading the offering, the filing shows. Bank of America Corp., UBS Group AG, Jefferies Financial Group Inc. and Royal Bank of Canada are also among the total of 17 book-running managers and co-managers. StandardAero plans for its shares to trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol SARO.
--With assistance from David Carnevali.
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