Colt CZ Group has completed an accelerated bookbuild offering

July 2024 — An accelerated subscription of Colt CZ Group shares has been completed.

Colt CZ Group is one of Europe’s leading premium-brand producers of small firearms for military and law enforcement (MLE), personal defense, hunting, sport shooting and other civilian uses, with sales in nearly 100 countries. The company continues to expand its product offering and, through strategic M&A activity — such as the acquisition of Colt Holding Company LLC in 2021, a global leader in firearm design and manufacturing, and Sellier & Bellot in 2024, a producer of small arms ammunition — is positioning itself as a one-stop shop for MLE clients and a key player in the consolidation of the small firearms industry.

Our role in the transaction

Oaklins’ team in the Czech Republic acted as sole global coordinator in this transaction. The US$9 million (CZK218 million) accelerated bookbuild (ABB) represented approximately a 0.7% stake in the company, equivalent to around 42 days of trading volume. The transaction targeted Czech, European and other institutional investors, as well as Czech family offices and high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs). The team secured orders from six institutional investors and numerous HNWIs based in the Czech Republic, demonstrating strong local appetite and the ability of domestic investors to provide sufficient demand for successful transactions on the Prague Stock Exchange. Due to the smaller offer size and healthy competition among institutional and HNWI investors, Oaklins’ team in the Czech Republic skillfully navigated pricing to achieve a discount of less than 5% to the pre-ABB last closing price. The final price of US$30 (CZK650) reflected a discount of only 4.4% to the pre-ABB last close, 2.7% to the trade/pricing date close and a 17.1% premium versus the June 2023 ABB, where the team also served as sole global coordinator.