New York-Domino's Pizza Inc., the second-largest U.S. pizza chain, announced a long-awaited plan to go public, setting itself up to cash in on recent investor enthusiasm over restaurant stocks. Domino's plans to sell as much as $300 million in common stock to the public, it said in a statement. Details of how many shares the company plans to offer and an estimated price per share are expected in future filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
Domino's operates more than 7,400 takeout and delivery stores, including franchises, in the United States and more than 50 countries. Its biggest U.S. competitors are Yum Brands Inc.'s Pizza Hut chain, Papa John's International Inc. and privately held Little Caesar Enterprises Inc. In 2003, its franchise stores posted retail sales of about $3.8 billion, including $1.2 billion in international sales, and its company-owned stores had $381.4 million in retail sales.
The preliminary prospectus Domino's filed with the SEC listed JPMorgan and Citigroup as the lead managers to handle the IPO. Bear, Stearns & Co. Inc., Credit Suisse First Boston and Lehman Brothers will assist. Domino's Pizza said it is seeking a New York Stock Exchange listing under the symbol "DPZ." -Reuters
