Casper opens for trading at $14.50 per share, after pricing at $12

Casper Sleep opened for trading on Thursday at $14.50 per share, a day after the mattress startup priced its initial public offering at $12 per share — the low end of its expected range.

The company is now listed on the New York Stock Exchange, trading under the symbol “CSPR.”

The pricing of over 8 million shares raised just over $100 million for Casper, and comes after it unexpectedly cut the range for the offering to $12-13 per share — becoming the latest startup to have its big ambitions dashed by the stark realities of an unforgiving market.

Although it started trading at a 21% premium from its IPO, the rock-bottom price suggests Casper is falling prey to the same lowered expectations that eventually humbled 2019’s class of marquee IPOs.

Casper once occupied the same strata as other “unicorns,” or startups valued above $1 billion, but is now closer to $600 million. The IPO’s reception is an effective temperature read for other Silicon Valley hopefuls like Airbnb that may also go public this year.

According to its regulatory filing, Casper is hoping to raise just under $125 million with its IPO, and hopes to capitalize on the growing emphasis on health and wellness — estimating the “global sleep economy” is worth about $432 billion. Last year, the company raised over $300 million from a list of big name investors, including actor Leonardo DiCaprio, rapper 50 Cent and retail giant Target (TGT).

However, investors have laid siege to a wide range of companies with lofty visions and valuations — but no actual profits. Casper reported $312.3 million in revenue in the first nine months of last year, but lost over $67 million as it expanded its retail footprint, and spent lavishly on marketing to fend off challenges from competitors like Sleep Number (SNBR).

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/casper-prices-ipo-222615705.html

February 6, 2020

Olin Registers a Loss

Olin swings to loss on weak demand, falling prices

February 06/2020

MOSCOW (MRC) — Olin (Clayton, Missouri) reports a fourth-quarter net loss of USD77 million, swinging from a profit of USD53 million in the year-ago period on weak demand and falling prices, according to Chemweek.

Sales totaled USD1.387 billion, down 15% year over year (YOY) from USD1.635 billion. Earnings per share came to a 49 cent loss, missing the average analyst estimate of an 11 cent loss as compiled by Refinitiv (New York).

Olin’s chairman, president, and CEO John E. Fischer says 2019 as a whole was difficult for the company. The chlor-alkali products and vinyls business reported weaker demand from urethane, agricultural, refrigerant, alumina, and pulp and paper customers, while the epoxy business saw weaker demand from automotive, electrical laminate, and industrial coatings customers. Olin’s caustic soda pricing during 2019 declined about 24% from 2018, while ethylene dichloride pricing declined about 30% and hydrochloric acid pricing about 40%. Epoxy resin prices dropped roughly 20% globally.

“Olin continues to face a challenging pricing environment as we enter 2020,” says Fischer. “As an example, Olin’s caustic soda and ethylene dichloride pricing in January 2020 is expected to be approximately 15% lower than the average 2019 price. We expect the cost containment and productivity initiatives from 2019, coupled with ongoing efforts in 2020, to provide a partial offset to this challenging product pricing environment.”

Sales in the chlor-alkali products and vinyls segment totaled USD762 million, down 22% YOY from USD981 million. Earnings came to USD33 million, down 77% from USD146 million. Olin cites lower caustic soda and ethylene dichloride pricing for most of the decline.

Sales in the epoxy segment totaled USD470 million, down 8% YOY from USD509 million. Segment earnings came to US

D15 million, down 21% from USD19 million. Lower product prices were only partially offset by higher resin volumes and lower feedstock benzene and propylene costs.

Sales in the Winchester ammunition segment totaled USD155 million, up 6% YOY from USD146 million, and earnings came to USD7 million, up 63% from USD4.3 million.

As MRC informed before, Olin Corporation announced in December 2019 that it plans to permanently shut down a chlor alkali plant with a capacity of 230,000 tons and its Vinylidene Chloride (VDC) production facility, both in Freeport, Texas. These closures are expected to be completed before the end of 2020.

According to MRC’s ScanPlast report, Russia’s consumption of caustic soda increased to 1,071,500 tonnes in 2019, up by 10% year on year (975,600 tonnes). Imports of caustic soda into Russia were 32,300 tonnes in 2019, up by 61% year on year (20,000 tonnes). Exports of caustic soda from Russia decreased to 245,400 tonnes in 2019, down by 7% year on year (263,600 tonnes). Production of caustic soda in the country totalled 1,289,400 tonnes in 2019, up by 1% year on year (1,278,900 tonnes).

Olin Corporation is a leading vertically-integrated global manufacturer and distributor of chemical products and a leading US manufacturer of ammunition. The chemical products produced include chlorine and caustic soda, vinyls, epoxies, chlorinated organics, bleach and hydrochloric acid. Winchester’s principal manufacturing facilities produce and distribute sporting ammunition, law enforcement ammunition, reloading components, small caliber military ammunition and components, and industrial cartridges.

http://www.mrcplast.com/news-news_open-365734.html