Cuscal’s $337M IPO disappoints after being billed as ‘year’s second-biggest float’

Cuscal Limited (ASX:CCL) has had a bumpy ride onto the ASX, already dropping 7.6% through its first half-day of trading to finish at $2.31 at close – 19c lower than when the Technology debutant rung the bell at midday in Sydney.

There were many tipping Cuscal to be “the year’s second-biggest float” behind Mexican-themed chain Guzman y Gomez, which sizzled after debuting in June.

Instead, the payments infrastructure company struggled to make a dent in the markets.

Cuscal was looking at raising $336.8 million at $2.50 a share.

The company did come into its big day on the bourse with cornerstone commitments already locked in, of course; those had been tallied at around $170 million all up and were calculated to be about 51% of the entire offering.

Still, Cuscal – now listed under CCL – will be disappointed with the response.

Through its first four hours, 32 buyers picked up 124,432 units.

The ASX debutant attracted little interest on HotCopper too; through to 3.50pm AEDT its 10 announcements registered zero comments and just 981 views. (Comparatively, top trending stock Raiden (ASX:RDN) netted over 55,000.)

Cuscal nearly listed on the ASX last year – and who knows how its first day could have gone in 2023 – but the payments company pulled the plug on that $367M move.

This time around, Cuscal spruiked itself as a strong investment with a proven track record when it comes to earnings growth. The fact its been debt free for some time was also on the ASX pitch deck – though judging by how day dot has gone, investors either didn’t read it or didn’t like what they saw.

This listing saw Cuscal priced 13 times higher than its net profit.

Before November 25, the now-listed company had also disclosed its undergoing a risk management review under Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) orders.

Bank of America was the leader financial advisor on this Aussie IPO. Also in the usual float process, Ord Minnett and Bell Potter sold the deal to retail investors.

Day two beckons for Cuscal now, where it will open at $2.31. With nearly a full week of trade ahead, things may turn around for the tech debutant yet.

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