To buy shares in the Applied Nutrition IPO, you’ll most likely need an account with a major investment platform such as Hargreaves Lansdown and AJ Bell. These platforms tend to get access to most retail IPOs.
Given that the IPO date hasn’t yet been confirmed, it’s a good idea to register for alerts with these types of brokers. By doing this, you’ll receive information on how to buy shares when the IPO is confirmed. You can register your details with Hargreaves Lansdown here. Meanwhile, you can find information in relation to IPOs with AJ Bell here.
When the IPO details are confirmed, you’ll probably have to complete a short application form with your broker in order to participate in it. Here, you’ll need to state how much money you’d like to invest in the company. Note that if investor demand is high, you may not be allocated as many shares as you applied for. For example, a maximum of £1,000 or £2,000 worth of shares may be allocated to each investor who applies for shares.
Who is Applied Nutrition?
Applied Nutrition is a sports nutrition, health, and wellness company that is based in Liverpool. Founded in 2014, it offers a range of products today including protein powders, energy gels, vitamins, and gym clothing.
Applied Nutrition mainly operates a business-to-business (B2B) strategy, selling its products through retailers such as Holland & Barrett, Sports Direct, and Asda. However, some sales are made directly to consumers through its websites and via eBay and Amazon.
At present, the UK is the group’s largest market in terms of revenue. However, the company operates in over 80 countries today and its international sales are growing quickly.
The IPO details
Looking to learn more about the Applied Nutrition IPO? Here’s everything you need to know.
On 7 October, British sports nutrition company Applied Nutrition confirmed that it’s planning an Initial Public Offering (IPO) on the London Stock Exchange this month. This IPO is going to be open to retail investors.
Right now, an IPO date for Applied Nutrition shares has not been determined. However, the company has confirmed its intention to float (on the London Stock Exchange’s main market) and said that it hopes to go public in October.
Reports suggest that the company could be valued at around £500 million. That market capitalisation could put the company in the UK’s FTSE 250 index.
Are Applied Nutrition shares a good investment?
It’s always hard to know how a stock will perform after an IPO. Sometimes, stocks shoot up and other times they plummet. In this case though, I think there’s a good chance the shares will do well after the IPO.
Looking at Applied Nutrition’s financials, the business is growing quickly. For the year ended 31 July 2024, revenue came in at £86.2 million – up 146% on the figure two years earlier. Additionally, the business is generating plenty of cash. At 31 July 2024, the company was sitting on cash of £18.7 million.
| Year ending | 31/7/2022 | 31/7/2023 | 31/7/2024 |
| Revenue (£000) | 35,028 | 60,781 | 86,152 |
| Adjusted EBITDA (£000) | 10,410 | 18,548 | 25,993 |
| Free cash flow (£000) | 7,459 | 9,337 | 16,891 |
| Net cash/(debt) (£000) | 5,399 | 12,735 | 18,720 |
There is potentially some valuation risk here, however. If the company was to be valued at £500 million, the free cash flow yield would only be about 3.4%, which is relatively low. Meanwhile, the EV/EBITDA ratio would be about 18.5, which is quite high.
And the valuation is not the only risk. Looking beyond the IPO, there is the risk that competitors could steal market share. This is a very competitive market and it’s hard to know how strong the company’s brand really is.
How have other recent UK IPOs performed?
It’s worth noting that a number of recent UK IPOs have been quite successful.
A good example here is the Raspberry Pi IPO, which took place in June. After this company came to the market, its share price shot up. Today, the share price is around 30% higher than the IPO price.
Another example is Rosebank Industries (this IPO wasn’t open to retail investors). After it came to the market in July, its share price soared.
The performance of these UK IPOs bodes well for the Applied Nutrition IPO if it goes ahead.
Based in London, Edward is a distinguished investment writer with an extensive client portfolio comprising a diverse array of prominent financial services firms across the globe. With over 15 years of hands-on experience in private wealth management and institutional asset management, both in the UK and Australia, he possesses a profound understanding of the finance industry.
Before establishing himself as a writer, Edward earned a Commerce degree from the prestigious University of Melbourne. Complementing his academic background, he holds the esteemed Investment Management Certificate (IMC) and is a proud holder of the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) qualification.
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