Japan Display plans IPO

Japan Display has confirmed it will float on the Nikkei later in the month.

The company, which is the world's largest maker of screens for smartphones, stated that it plans to raise $4 billion (£2.4 billion) in a public share float on March 19th.

Japan Display was set up in 2012 by combining the liquid crystal display units of Hitachi, Toshiba, and Sony and the firm is seeking a price of between ¥900 and ¥1,100 (£5.30 to £6.48) per share when it floats this month.

However, this figure is below the earlier guidance that had been issued about the impending stock flotation, potentially indicating investors are cautious over the value of the stocks.

Japan Display (JDI)  makes the screens for most of the world's best-selling smartphones, including the market leading iPhone 5 from Apple and its main competitor the Samsung Galaxy.

JDI formation

A Japanese government-backed fund called the Innovation Network Corporation of Japan (INCJ) helped to set up the company two years ago when it contributed $2 billion (£1.19 billion) to help the firm get started in 2012. INCJ is currently estimated to own around 70 per cent of Japan Display, but it is not clear how this figure could be affected by the impending share sale.

The final offer price is expected to be released by the company in a week's time (March 10th) and then investors will get the chance to buy shares in the firm for the first time nine days later.

In a statement responding to the press last month (February 13th), the firm said: "JDI wishes to make clear that today's media reports referring to JDI's plan to list its stock are not based on any statement made by JDI. JDI currently has nothing specific to announce relating to the subject matter of the media reports referred to above."

JDI aims to "combine the cutting-edge technologies" of the three companies it was combined from, with the goal of "refining and developing them to spearhead the evolution of the display industry itself", according to the company's president and chief executive Shuichi Otsuka.

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