16/08/2012

What's Going on with Manchester United's Stock Price? An Update

Remember last week when we explained that the banks that had underwritten the IPO (i.e., those who had ensured it would get off the ground) had been artificially holding up the price?

Well that all ended today. You can see exactly when on the chart below. It was somewhere around 11.06am Eastern Time (a little after 4pm BST).

So what does that mean? It means the market thinks that, for that price, the club is overvalued. By some analysts estimates, fair value is only $4.97 a share! This would imply an £895 million enterprise valuation (which is a valuation that includes the debt) or £535 million equity valuation (which is just the available float times price) at current exchange rates.

Remember too that this doesn't hurt the club's finances. It hurts the Glazers as they are starved for cash and potentially hastens their departure.

In the immortal words of the Sage from Springfield, who knows slightly less than the Oracle of Omaha: