Lotte Rental to enhance future mobility platform with up to $740 mn IPO funds

[Photo provided by Lotte Rental Co.]

South Korea’s industry No. 1 Lotte Rental Co. will strengthen its future mobility business as a new growth driver with funds raised from its upcoming initial public offering in mid-August, the first IPO for companies under arms of the country’s fifth largest conglomerate Lotte Group in three years.

“We will use the IPO proceeds in expanding rental asset and building a future mobility platform,” the company’s chief executive Kim Hyun-soo said during an IPO press conference held on Monday.

Lotte Rental, founded in 1986 and integrated into Lotte Group in 2015, has the largest share of 21.8 percent in the Korean car rental market, followed by SK Rent A Car (formerly AJ Rent A Car, 19.2 percent) and Hyundai Capital (12 percent). Lotte Rental reported 49.2 billion won ($42.7 million) in operating profit in the first quarter ended March, up 49 percent from a year ago on sales of 588.9 billion won, up 9 percent on year.

Most of its sales came from long- and short-term car rentals (1.36 trillion won) last year, followed by used car sales with 566 billion won, ordinary rental with 191.7 billion won and car sharing with 128.7 billion won.

Lotte Rental’s IPO is also expected to mark an inflection point for Lotte Group as it will be the first capital market debut for a Lotte Group company since the listing of Lotte Data Communication in 2018. In particular, it is expected to play an important role in future evaluation of its unlisted parent company Hotel Lotte, which has been seeking to go public to cement its position as the group’s holding company by diluting the control by Japan’s Lotte Holdings. The IPO of Lotte Rental is expected to bolster the valuation of Lotte Hotel with a 47.06 percent stake in the car rental unit.

During the press conference, the company confirmed the IPO price of its 14,422,000 shares is determined at a band of 47,000 won to 59,000 won to raise up to 850.9 billion won on the main Kospi market in mid-August.

Lotte Rental’s corporate value was calculated in reference to that of listed peer companies such as SK Rent A Car and AJ Networks. The company’s valuation looks ‘rational’ compared to the recent hyped IPOs such as Krafton and Kakao Bank, analysts said, but the decline in the company’s market share and a relatively high debt ratio would make retail investors hesitant.

Its book building will take place on Aug. 2-4 to fix an IPO price before public subscriptions on Aug. 9-10. Lotte Rental is expected to reach a market capital of some 2 trillion won after the IPO. Lead managers are NH Investment & Securities and Korea Investment & Securities.

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