Turkish Burger King operator pulls U.S. IPO amid market jitters

NEW YORK - Reuters

Turkish fast-food chain operator TFI Tab Food Investments postponed its planned $220 million initial public offering in New York on Feb. 6, as the recent stock market volatility makes such stock market flotations challenging.

“TFI will continue to evaluate the timing for the proposed offering as market conditions develop,” the company said in a statement.

The IPO postponement by TFI, the master franchisee of Burger King in Turkey and China, followed several volatile trading days on Wall Street, which on Feb. 5 saw the biggest one-day drop for the S&P 500 and the Dow in more than six years.

It could discourage other IPO hopefuls from going forward with their plans.

Earlier on Feb. 6, Argentine biotechnology firm Bioceres SA extended by one day the offer period on its IPO in the U.S. market.

IPO candidates typically avoid going to market during volatile periods because of the uncertainty over investor demand.

Last year saw an 84 percent pickup in the proceeds raised from IPOs on the New York Stock Exchange and the NASDAQ after a weak 2016, according to consultancy EY.

The uptick continued last month with 20 new listings worth $9.95 billion, the biggest January haul on record, Thomson Reuters data showed.

But U.S. security company ADT Corp, owned by private equity firm Apollo Global Management LLC, last month priced its IPO well below its expected range.

Eleven IPOs were scheduled to be priced this week, according to Renaissance Capital, a research and investment firm that focuses on IPOs.