Irish hotel group Dalata raises 265 mln euro in listing

1(Reuters) – Irish hotel operator Dalata has raised 265 million euro ($369 million) from listing its shares in Dublin and London, the latest real estate-related initial public offering as the property market stabilises.

Irish commercial property prices have steadied after falls of around 65 percent when a credit-fuelled real estate bubble burst, leading to a surge in demand from international investors for hotels, office blocks and retail units.

Dalata raised more that its targeted 150 to 200 million euros and said on Tuesday the proceeds would be used to acquire a portfolio of some 16-25 hotels throughout Ireland and to pay down debt of 4.1 million euro.

“We are pleased to welcome quality international institutions as shareholders on admission and believe that this reflects the strength of our investment case and prospects,” Dalata chief executive Pat McCann said in a statement.

McCann, an industry veteran and former head of the Jurys Doyle Hotel Group, founded Dalata in 2007 and it now operates 40 hotels, including the 13-strong Maldron chain.

Dalata’s fund raising comes as Ireland’s state-owned National Asset Management Agency (NAMA), the “bad bank” set up to purge lenders of soured loans and assets, prepares to bring a number of prime Dublin hotels to the market.

The listing follows the establishment of the country’s first real estate investment trusts (REIT) with successful initial public offerings last year by Hibernia REIT and Green REIT.

European IPO activity has more than tripled year-on-year to $12 billion so far in 2014, as investors rush to cash in on the region’s nascent economic recovery.