(Bloomberg) -- Weilong Delicious Global Holdings Ltd. has revived its Hong Kong initial public offering, paving the way for one of the city’s biggest listings this year.
The Chinese snack maker refiled a preliminary prospectus Monday evening, confirming an earlier Bloomberg News report. The filing doesn’t contain any offering details. The company could raise about $500 million in a share sale, which it may launch in the second half, according to people familiar with the matter.
Discussions are ongoing and details of the IPO’s size and timing could still change, the people said, who asked not to be identified as the information is private. A representative for Weilong declined to comment on the IPO details.
Founded in 2001, Weilong is most famous for spicy stick snacks made from seasoned flour, with brand names including Big Latiao and Kiss Burn, the prospectus shows. It reported net income of 827 million yuan ($124 million) in 2021, a 1% increase from the previous year.
The company’s investors include Hillhouse and Tencent Holdings Ltd. It first filed for a Hong Kong IPO, which could have raised as much as $1 billion, in May 2021. It later joined a slew of companies, including Apple Inc. supplier Biel Crystal Manufactory Ltd. and China Tourism Group Duty Free Corp., that shelved listing plans.
Inflation concerns and the war in Ukraine have slowed down Hong Kong’s share sale activity significantly. Companies have raised about $2.5 billion through IPOs so far this year, only a fraction of the $28 billion raised during the same period in 2021, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. JL Mag Rare-Earth Co. is the only firm that raised more than $500 million in a Hong Kong listing this year.
Morgan Stanley, China International Capital Corp. and UBS Group AG are joint sponsors of Weilong’s listing, according to the latest filing.
(Updates with net income in fourth paragraph.)
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