Business
Twitter prices above range to raise at least $1.8 billion
NEW YORK – Twitter Inc priced its initial public offering above its expected range to raise at least $1.8 billion, in a sign of strong investor demand for the most highly anticipated U.S. public float since Facebook Inc.
The microblogging network priced 70 million shares at $26, above the targeted range of $23 to $25, which had been raised once before.
The IPO values Twitter at $14.1 billion, with the potential to reach $14.4 billion if underwriters exercise an over-allotment option, as they are widely expected to.
If the full overallotment is exercised, Twitter could raise $2.1 billion, making it the second largest Internet offering in the U.S. behind Facebook’s $16 billion IPO last year and ahead of Google Inc’s 2004 IPO, according to Thomson Reuters data.
The focus now turns to how Twitter stock will fare on Thursday. Some analysts said they expect shares to experience a small pop during the first day. Twelve-month price targets on the stock range from $29 to $54.
Brian Wieser, an analyst at Pivotal Research Group who valued Twitter this week at $29 a share, said the stock appears to have strong institutional investor support and could easily close over $30 a share on its first day.
But he warned that trading could be volatile, given that Wall Street has struggled to value an unorthodox social media company with a newfangled business model.
“There’s still so much uncertainty and it’s so difficult to even identify how big the opportunity is,” Wieser said. “Twitter will make Netflix look like General Electric as a bellwether of stability.”
Investor enthusiasm for Twitter, which boasts 230 million users including heads of state and celebrities, is strong even though the microblogging network has never turned a profit.
Moshe Cohen, a professor at Columbia Business School in New York, said pressure on the company could quickly mount if shares lose steam out of the gate.
“Twitter, as a company with no expectations of making profits for several years, needs its investors to have faith,” Cohen said. “If that stock starts to show some negative momentum from the beginning, it could last for a while.”
Twitter, however, is listing amid the strongest market for U.S. IPOs since 2007, as equity markets soared and uncertainty around the U.S. debt ceiling has largely subsided for now.
A number of IPOs have doubled on their first day of trading, including Container Store Group, restaurant chain Potbelly Corp and software company Benefitfocus Inc.
Twitter hiked its target IPO price on Monday from an initial range of $17 to $20. All of the proceeds from the IPO will go directly to the company, with no insider selling taking place.
Goldman Sachs Group Inc, which led the Twitter IPO, tops the list of U.S. technology bookrunners this year with an 18.3 percent market share, up from 11 percent a year ago when it ranked fifth, according to Thomson Reuters data.
Morgan Stanley and JPMorgan Chase & Co also led the IPO.
AVOIDING FACEBOOK’S MISTAKES
Twitter has been focused on avoiding many of the pitfalls that plagued Facebook during its $16 billion IPO last May. The company priced shares more conservatively than Facebook did and chose to list on the New York Stock Exchange rather than the Nasdaq.
Facebook had increased both the number of shares and the price range just before its public debut, which contributed to a sustained decline in its share price. The shares took more than a year to recover to the $38 IPO price.
“Twitter did a good job putting together its message,” said Tom Taulli, an independent IPO expert. “It wasn’t about distractions, it was about having a great property and brand and a focus on the business…that wasn’t necessarily the message when Facebook came out.”
The high level of interest stoked by Twitter’s road show spurred speculation in recent days that its bankers could raise the price again significantly higher than $25, but they ultimately did not.
“I’m glad they didn’t take it up higher, as speculated,” said Suntrust Robinson Humphries analyst Robert Peck. “It still provides enough upside for investors and provides a nice contrast to Facebook.”
CHALLENGES REMAIN
Despite Twitter’s successful IPO, some analysts have expressed concerns that Twitter’s valuation is dependent on sustained user growth and a maturing advertising business – two factors that may never be realized.
Although the company has close to a quarter-billion-users, it lacks the ubiquity of Facebook or the “stickiness” factor that keeps people checking the No. 1 social network on a daily basis. A Reuters-Ipsos poll last month showed that 36 percent of people who signed up for a Twitter account say they do not use it.
Twitter, which has extensively courted large brand marketers, still generates relatively little revenue per user compared with Facebook, while the majority of its users are located outside the U.S. in countries such as Indonesia or Brazil, which are less lucrative digital advertising markets.
During its road show over the past week, Twitter executives had assured investors that they plan to wring more money out of its international user base and smaller businesses by expanding its self-serve advertising products and opening offices abroad.
But analysts say the company could encounter a slew of regulatory and policy hurdles in foreign countries as it expands.
Twitter said last month that its third-quarter revenue more than doubled to $168.6 million, but net losses widened to $64.6 million from $21.6 million a year earlier as costs ballooned.
Aside from aggressively growing its overseas sales presence, Twitter’s expenditures will likely continue to rise.
Twitter disclosed Monday that it had received a letter from International Business Machines Corp accusing the social media company of infringing on at least three U.S. patents. Twitter’s well-known intellectual property vulnerabilities could force the company to invest heavily in expanding its patent portfolio, similar to what Facebook has done since going public.
Twitter is set to trade on the New York Stock Exchange on Thursday under the ticker TWTR.
– REUTERS
The President of Dangote Industries Limited (DIL), Aliko Dangote, has expressed support for the economic reforms of the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu administration, particularly the removal of the fuel subsidy and the liberalisation of the foreign exchange market.
The industrialist gave the commendation in Lagos on Monday at the Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX) during the formal launch of the Initial Public Offering (IPO) of Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals (DPRP).
He also commended Tinubu’s leadership and said the Dangote Refinery was supporting the administration’s efforts.
“I want to thank him for taking a lot of bold steps by removing the subsidy and democratising the exchange rate…” Dangote said.
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He assured that the Dangote Group would continue working with the government to contribute to Nigeria’s development.
“So, we thank you very much for your leadership and we will continue to partner with the government to ensure that we make this country great and we make Africa great,” he said.
Dangote, a former president of the Nigerian Exchange, also expressed surprise at the transformation of the bourse, saying he had not expected it to reach its current level.
“I was the president of this exchange. Even when I was inviting people to come and help me turn the exchange around to make it a world-class exchange, I never thought this exchange would be at this level in 2026,” he said.
He revealed that a more grand ceremony would be held with Tinubu in attendance.
The refinery’s IPO, which opened on Monday, offers 4.1 billion new ordinary shares at N525 per share, with a minimum subscription of 10 shares valued at N5,250.
The offer is scheduled to close on 13 October 2026, subject to the terms of the prospectus.
President of Dangote Industries Limited, Aliko Dangote, has described the Initial Public Offering of Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals as a “People’s IPO” as the N2.15tn offer officially opened on the Nigerian Exchange on Monday.
Dangote sounded the gong at the NGX trading floor in Lagos to formally open the offer, marking a major milestone for Nigeria’s capital market.
The IPO comprises 4.1 billion new ordinary shares priced at N525 per share, with a minimum subscription of 10 shares valued at N5,250.
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The offer, which opened on September 14, 2026, is scheduled to close on October 13, 2026, subject to the terms contained in the prospectus.
Speaking after sounding the gong, Dangote said the offering was aimed at widening public participation in the ownership of the refinery.
“We fully share all our prosperity with the people. That’s why we call this ‘People’s IPO’. We know the journey has actually just started.
“It’s not only about the refinery.”
The Dangote Refinery IPO is the first refinery offering to investors on the Nigerian stock market in the 66-year history of the Nigerian Exchange.
The offer is open to retail, institutional and eligible African investors, providing members of the public with an opportunity to acquire an interest in one of Africa’s largest industrial projects.
Dangote also disclosed that the IPO was part of a broader plan by the Dangote Group to list more of its companies on the capital market.
He said the group intended to list every company that would operate under its umbrella in the future.
“We, as a group, will list every single company that will operate. I don’t know about the others, but I know our own market cap, even at a 10 times P/E ratio by 2030, should not be less than $350 billion,” he said.
The businessman added that the Nigerian Exchange would provide a platform for the group to pursue listings on other international exchanges.
“From this exchange, then we can go to any other place.
“So, Nigeria and Africa is our base. We want to make sure that we join our continent.”
The Dangote Refinery, located in the Lekki Free Zone, Lagos, has been positioned as a major investment in Nigeria’s domestic refining capacity and efforts to reduce dependence on imported petroleum products.
The opening ceremony was attended by Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, NGX Group Chairman Umaru Kwairanga, the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi Ojaja II, Zenith Bank founder Jim Ovia and other dignitaries.
The N2.15tn IPO will remain open until October 13, 2026, subject to the terms contained in the prospectus.
A 0.4 percent increase from the 1.67 million bpd recorded in July saw Nigeria’s crude and condensate production rise to 1,677,777 barrels per day in August 2026.
The growth, disclosed in a statement by Head, Media and Corporate Communications, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Eniola Akinkuotu, on Sunday.
Another interesting aspect of the report is that it shows Nigeria’s consistent compliance with the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) crude oil quota for the fourth consecutive month.
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According to the regulator, crude oil production, excluding condensates, stood at 1,500,190 barrels per day in August.
The report revealed that Nigeria meeting her OPEC quota for the fourth consecutive month, reflects continued efforts by operators to restore affected production capacity and address operational bottlenecks.
The latest increase followed the resolution of operational challenges involving the Single Buoy Mooring at the Erha field, which had affected production performance in the preceding month.
The NUPRC said the restoration of normal evacuation and production operations at the asset contributed positively to the overall output recorded during the month.
The statement read, “The NUPRC attributed the modest improvement in August production largely to the resolution of the Single Buoy Mooring operational challenges at the Erha field, which had adversely impacted production performance in the preceding month.
“The restoration of normal evacuation and production operations at the asset contributed positively to overall production volumes during the period under review.”
The regulator added that production activities across most other producing assets remained relatively stable, with operators sustaining measures aimed at improving efficiency, maintaining asset integrity and reducing operational disruptions.
According to the commission, the lowest daily crude oil and condensate production recorded in August was 1.64 million bpd, while the highest stood at 1.71 million bpd.
A breakdown of production by terminals and streams showed that the Bonny Terminal recorded the highest average output during the month, accounting for 320.04 thousand bpd.
Forcados Terminal followed with 317.40 thousand bpd, while the Qua Iboe Terminal recorded an average of 171.72 thousand bpd of crude oil and condensates.
Escravos Oil Terminal posted a daily average of 131.71 thousand bpd, while Bonga ranked fifth among the leading producing terminals with an average of 92.50 thousand bdp of crude oil.
The August output represented an increase of 6,777 bpd from July’s 1,671,000 barrels per day, based on the rounded July figure. It was also 57,621 bpd, lower than the 1,735,398 bpd recorded in June.
The June figure represented a decline of about 3.3 per cent in August when compared with the latest available June production data.
The NUPRC said the August performance reflected the industry’s continued efforts to resolve operational constraints and restore affected production capacity.
It stated, “While the increase recorded in August was modest, it reflects the industry’s continued efforts to address operational bottlenecks and restore affected production capacity.
“Stakeholders remain focused on enhancing asset reliability, improving operational resilience and advancing intervention programs to support sustained production growth in the coming months.”
The regulator further emphasised the importance of timely intervention, effective asset management and collaboration among industry stakeholders in safeguarding the country’s crude oil production capacity.
Nigeria’s oil production has remained a major focus of government efforts to increase revenue, improve foreign exchange earnings and strengthen the country’s ability to meet its OPEC production quota.
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