Carlyle-backed StandardAero files for IPO showing a profit

Aircraft maintenance services provider StandardAero Inc., which was bought by Carlyle Group Inc. in 2019, filed for an initial public offering as it also pursues a potential sale.

Scottsdale, Arizona-based StandardAero filed Friday with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, showing a profit through the first half of the year, reversing earlier annual losses. The company will disclose proposed terms for the IPO in a later filing when underwriters are ready to begin marketing the shares.

Bloomberg News has reported that Carlyle has been weighing a so-called dual track after selecting banks to advise it on whether to pursue an IPO or a sale of the company. StandardAero could be valued in a transaction at about $10 billion, including debt, people familiar with the matter have said.

Blackstone Inc., CVC Capital Partners Plc and Veritas Capital were among the private equity firms weighing bids for StandardAero, Bloomberg News reported in July.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Morgan Stanley have been advising StandardAero on its options and are listed in the filing as the two lead banks for the IPO.

Bank of America Corp., UBS Group AG, Jefferies Financial Group Inc. and Royal Bank of Canada are also among the total of 17 book-running managers and co-managers. StandardAero plans for its shares to trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol SARO.

StandardAero is the largest pure-play provider of aerospace engine aftermarket services for fixed and rotary wing aircraft, serving the commercial, military and business aviation end markets, according to its filing. 

Carlyle completed its purchase of StandardAero from Veritas in 2019. A statement at the time didn’t disclose financial terms of the deal. Carlyle will continue to control the company after the IPO, according to the filing.

For the first half of the year, StandardAero had net income of $8.6 million on revenue of $2.6 billion, That compared with a loss of about $12.6 million on $2.3 billion in revenue during the same period in 2023.

StandardAero’s filing came about an hour after KinderCare Learning Cos. filed for a first-time share sale of its own. So far this year, companies have raised $32 billion via IPOs on US exchanges, more than doubling the mark at this point in 2023. Still, it’s about 13% of 2021’s showing over the same period and lags behind activity from pre-pandemic norms, data compiled by Bloomberg show.