Shares in caravan maker Knaus Tabbert open at $68 in market debut

BERLIN (Reuters) – Shares in German caravan maker Knaus Tabbert opened at 58 euros ($68) on Wednesday, their first day of trading following their stock market listing in Frankfurt and in line with the issue price.

Knaus Tabbert said on Tuesday it was placing 4 million shares instead of an earlier target of up to 4.9 million, adding the shares would be priced at the low end of its 58 to 74 euros per share range.

The popularity of camping has soared during the COVID-19 pandemic and recreational vehicle registrations jumped by more than a quarter in Europe from May to July, while the proportion of Europeans who went on camping holidays rose by about 20%, according to a recent survey by Erwin Hymer.

However, as caravan makers are considered a niche segment, bankers struggled to drum up large investor demand, a person familiar with the matter said.

Europe’s third biggest producer of caravans after France’s Trigano and Thor Industries’ Erwin Hymer, Knaus Tabbert had sales of 780 million euros in 2019, when 3,000 staff produced more than 26,000 caravans and mobile homes.

(Reporting by Michelle Adair; Editing by Christoph Steitz)