People.cn Co (603000.SH), the online business of the Chinese Communist Party’s official newspaper, raised RMB1.4 billion (US$222 million) in an initial public offering in Shanghai, nearly three times the amount it sought, Bloomberg reported. The People’s Daily website operator sold 69.1 million shares at RMB20 each, valuing the company at RMB5.5 billion or 46 times earnings. That left the website operator with an initial market capitalization of US$872 million, below that of the New York Times Co (NYT.NYSE) at US$954 million. The People’s Daily website ranked 50th in popularity in China last August, according to data from Chinarank.org.cn, but the site also benefits from exclusive government news content and stable ad revenue from government-related companies, the prospectus said. People.cn plans to fund a RMB527 million upgrade of its networks and content with part of the proceeds.
Categories