Genworth Australia to offer 220 million shares in an initial public offering

Published May 14, 2014 by Robert Powell, III

Henrico County-based Genworth Financial Inc. says its Australian mortgage insurance business will offer 220 million shares in an initial public offering.

That number represents about 34 percent of Genworth Australia's outstanding ordinary shares.

Genworth had announced in April that it planned to sell up to 40 percent of Genworth Australia's shares in an IPO by the end of June.

The company originally planned to sell shares in its Australian mortgage insurance unit in the second quarter of 2012, but it postponed the move that April after it encountered “elevated loss experience” in Australia during the first quarter.

The postponement caused Genworth’s stock to drop 24 percent in one day, from $7.70 to $5.87. The stock closed yesterday at $18.35.

The final price of the IPO will be set Friday.