Colfax, a supplier of fluid handling products including pumps and specialty valves, priced its 18.7 million share offering at $18, 12.5% above the midpoint of its proposed range of $15 to $17. Insiders sold 52% of the total shares offered. The shares are expected to begin trading Thursday on the NYSE under the symbol "CFX." Merrill Lynch, Lehman Brothers, and UBS acted as the joint book runners on the deal. While the two co-founders sold a substantial percentage of their stake and are receiving a large dividend from the proceeds, Colfax is a sound fundamental story. The company is a market leader in its niche markets, is focused on rapidly growing industries and geographic areas and has a successful history of making accretive acquisitions.
