Exclusive-Carlyle-backed StandardAero set to price IPO above range, sources say

By Echo Wang

NEW YORK (Reuters) – StandardAero, a U.S. aircraft maintenance services provider, is set to price its U.S. initial public offering above its indicated range, setting it up for one of the biggest stock market debuts this year, people familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.

Scottsdale, Arizona-based StandardAero, which is backed by buyout firm Carlyle, is getting close to securing enough investor support to price its share sale at $24 apiece, above its range of $20 to $23, the sources said, requesting anonymity as the discussions are confidential.

The company and some of its existing shareholders are expected to sell 60 million shares to raise $1.44 billion, the sources said, making it the biggest U.S. IPO since cold-storage warehouse operator Lineage raised $4.45 billion in June.

At that price, the IPO would value StandardAero at roughly $8 billion, based on about 334.5 million outstanding shares.

StandardAero, which upsized its IPO last week, and Carlyle did not immediately respond to requests for comment.