Porsche maxes out just above offer price in trading debut

Shares of sports car maker Porsche AG hovered just above their offer price on their first day of trading following a $14 billion IPO in Frankfurt on Thursday.

Amid high demand from investors, the shares were priced at EUR82.50, the top end of an initial EUR76.50-82.50 range. After rising as much as 4.9% by mid-day, the stock retreated close to its offer price.

Even a broadly neutral performance contrasted with a 2% drop in Germany’s DAX benchmark on Thursday, as European investor confidence was battered by Russia’s imminent annexation of occupied Ukrainian regions, a suspected attack on key pipelines and a crisis of confidence in the new U.K. government’s management of its economy.

Porsche's choice of timing for going public had raised questions in advance. "Automotive sector market valuations have been hit by the possibility of a recession in major markets, chip shortages, war in Ukraine, higher raw material costs, higher prices paid at the pump, and other inflationary cost pressures," said Morningstar Senior Equity Analyst Richard Hilgert ahead of the IPO.

Porsche’s IPO is the largest in Germany since Deutsche Telekom went public back in 1996.

In advance of the offering, Volkswagen (VWAGY) revamped Porsche’s capital structure into two share classes: a 50% preferred non-voting stock and 50% common stock with voting rights. Volkswagen also has a dual share class structure with 59% in common stock with voting rights and 41% in preferred stock that is nonvoting.