Harrah's Shelves $531 Million IPO on Market Conditions

Harrah's Entertainment Inc., the largest operator of casinos, ended its 531 million U.S. dollars initial public offering, the first private equity firm backed by pulling its U.S. IPO in six months.

Harrah's, taken private Apollo Global Management LLC and TPG Capital in a leveraged buyout in 2008, canceled the sale because of "market conditions", according to the statement today the company's Las Vegas-based. The postponement was the first private equity firm backed from Americold Realty Trust, owned by billionaire Ron Burkle's Yucaipa Cos., shelved its offer in May, according to data compiled by our reportes and Greenwich, Connecticut was Renaissance Capital LLC.

IPO by Harrah's was the last of four scheduled by the private equity-backed companies in the largest sales week in the U.S. starting from March 2008. Nearly 40 percent of the IPOs managed by buyout funds left buyers with losses this year, while 500 of Standard & Poor's posted its biggest daily fall since August this week.

"Market conditions have been very volatile," said Wayne Wilbanks, chief investment officer at Wilbanks Smith & Thomas in Norfolk, Virginia, which manages about $ 1.6 billion. "The market will remain challenging with some of these super-leveraged" deals, he said.

New York Apollo, Leon Black David Bonderman and TPG took private Harrah's 30.7 billion U.S. dollars, including the cost of debt and transaction in January 2008. Harrah's intention to change its name to Caesars Entertainment Corp., according to its filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Harrah's bonds

Harrah's plans to offer 31.3 million shares for $ 15 to $ 17 each, the filing said. The actions planned to be sold in a public offer is in addition to 710.3 million U.S. dollars of registered shares for sale by John Paulson, Paulson & Co. hedge funds. Agreed in June to acquire nearly 10 percent of Harrah's by swapping the bonds purchased at a discount.

Harrah's $ 3300000000 10 percent bonds due in December 2018, rated CCC by Standard & Poor's fell 2.25 cents to 86 cents from 17:04 in New York, according to Trace, the bond information system The price of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority. The debt has fallen from a peak of 93.5 cents on 5 November.

Harrah's LBO was closed as a deepening financial crisis prompted the worst recession since the Great Depression and froze to do business in the shopping industry.

Restructured debt

The private owners of heritage casino operator had cut the company's debt by over $ 4 billion in the last two years, offering creditors new bonds at a discount to their old notes, the repurchase of debt for less than other nominal value and extend the maturities of $ 5.5 billion in loans.

Apollo holdings include Parsippany, New Jersey, Realogy Corp., while TPG participated in some of the largest LBO boom shopping that preceded the credit crisis. Among them, the record of TXU Corp. acquisition in 2007, a deal valued at 43.2 billion U.S. dollars, including assumed debt.

Among other IPOs of private equity backed this week, Aeroflex Holding Corp., semiconductor maker owned by Golden Gate Capital, Veritas Capital, and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. buyout fund, closed unchanged today on his first day New York Stock Exchange trade.

Aeroflex sold 17.25 million shares at $ 13.50 each yesterday, the lower end of its price range. Goldman Sachs in New York and Zurich-based Credit Suisse Group AG led the IPO.

Booz Allen, LPL

Booz Allen Hamilton Holding Corp. and LPL Investment Holdings Inc., both backed by private equity firms, there was progress on the first day of at least 7 percent this week after its IPO, while General Motors sold 20.1 billion U.S. dollars of shares common and preferred.

LPL of Boston and McLean, Virginia, Booz Allen rose more in its first trading day of the IPO average private equity backed. U.S. companies sold by private equity firms have earned an average of 1.2 percent in its debut on the stock, according to data compiled by us. Companies without private equity rose 9.4 percent on average, according to the data.

Moreover, Lizha Environmental Corp., a maker of synthetic leather waste from recycled leather, priced 2.5 million shares at $ 4 each day. The Tongxiang, China-based company had offered 1.82 million shares at $ 5 to $ 6 each, a filing with the SEC showed. The shares rose 0.3 percent in trading today.

Sales were among the 10 initial bids are expected this week. The largest came from GM, which sold 15.8 billion U.S. dollars of common shares, almost 50 percent more than the Detroit-based company initially requested, according to data compiled by us. The automaker also sold 4.35 billion U.S. dollars of preferred stock.

The IPO was the second largest in U.S. history After San Francisco, Visa Inc. 's 19.7 billion U.S. dollars in March 2008 offering, the data show. GM shares, which sold for $ 33 each, rose 3.6 percent to $ 34.19 on the company's market debut yesterday and gained 0.2 percent to $ 34.26 today.