UPDATE 1-Panmure Gordon sees "meatier" second half as IPO activity picks up

Tue Sep 24, 2013 10:35am BST
* Advised on 3 IPOs in H1

* Expects increased IPO activity in H2

* H1 pretax profit plummets 84 percent

* Sees lower H2 costs

By Richa Naidu

Sept 24 (Reuters) - Panmure Gordon & Co Plc said it expected a "meatier" second half as IPO activity in Britain picks up and the investment bank and stockbroker reins in costs.

The 137-year-old company, which advises more than 110 London-listed companies ranging from FTSE-100s to small caps, worked on three share listings in the first half of 2013, including the 1.54 billion pound ($2.47 billion) offering of life insurer Partnership Assurance Group in June.

"I think confidence has been showing just in index performance in the UK market, so people are looking as much at new vehicles to capitalise on as existing ones," Chief Executive Phillip Wale told Reuters, adding that the mood was completely widespread across sectors.

Subdued listing activity due to the global financial crisis had hit small brokers hard in recent years, but more companies are expected to tap the public markets in the coming months as rising stock markets whet investor appetite.


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