By Prakhar Srivastava and Arasu Kannagi Basil
Dec 8 (Reuters) – Tax advisory firm Andersen Group said on Monday it was targeting a valuation of up to $1.75 billion in its initial public offering in the United States, as it races, among others, to list before the window for fresh flotations closes for the year.
The San Francisco, California-based company is seeking to raise up to $176 million by offering 11 million shares priced between $14 and $16 apiece.
Andersen Group emerged from the rubble of global accounting firm Arthur Andersen’s 2002 collapse, following a scandal at the now-defunct energy company Enron.
Lukas Muehlbauer, IPOX research analyst, said the IPO offered an “interesting resurrection story,” with the company betting that the “brand’s historic association with quality will outweigh the reputational baggage of Enron.”
Arthur Andersen was convicted of obstruction of justice for its role in the Enron saga, but the verdict was later overturned by the Supreme Court.
Following its collapse, HSBC bought part of the firm’s tax practice through a new arm, Wealth & Tax Advisory Services (WTAS).
WTAS, which split from HSBC in a management buyout, was rebranded in 2014 as Andersen Tax.
Andersen offers tax, valuation and financial advisory services to individuals and commercial clients.
After a relatively quiet end to November, the U.S. IPO market is gearing up for a final flurry of deals this year as corporate issuers look to seize on a narrow window before the Christmas holidays.
Muehlbauer said the decision to use the year-end IPO window suggests that the management is prioritizing immediate access to capital over potential volatility in early 2026.
He added that the timing also aligned with tax-extension filings seasonality, which allowed the firm showcase its typically strong September results.
Morgan Stanley and UBS Investment Bank are the lead underwriters for the offering.
Andersen will list on the NYSE under the symbol “ANDG.”
(Reporting by Arasu Kannagi Basil and Prakhar Srivastava in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber, Anil D’Silva and Shinjini Ganguli)
