Fund management group Gartmore has made an inauspicious start to life as a listed company.
Gartmore had already cut the price range on its planned initial public offering last week from 250p-330p to 220p-250p, as it struggled to enthuse investors. In the end it set a price of 220p, prompting David Buik at BGC Partners to comment:
Despite the recovery of the stock market in recent months investors are cynical about IPOs unless the issue is virtually being given away. IPOs of financial stocks, however well run and profitable they may be, tend to carry a stigma, even though it may be quite unfair.
Now on the first day of condition dealings Gartmore's shares have slipped to 214.5p.
