Star Sports Medicine jumps 118% as Hong Kong debut frenzy extends

[HONG KONG] Shares of Star Sports Medicine, a maker of medical devices, surged as much as 204 per cent in their Hong Kong trading debut on Tuesday (May 5), extending a run of hot first-day performances in the city.

The stock climbed to as high as HK$299 early trading, compared with an initial public offering price of HK$98.50 per share. Strong investor demand helped the company raise HK$829.6 million (S$135.2 million), with its retail portion subscribed more than 7,823 times. The shares eventually closed at HK$215, representing a massive 118.3% gain.

The debut adds to a string of strong Hong Kong listings in recent months, as investors warm to Chinese healthcare and technology names. The weighted average first-day gain of listings that raised at least US$100 million has been 42.3 per cent this year, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Recent debuts included a roughly 380 per cent pop for optical-computing firm Lightelligence and a 241 per cent surge for hardware and software firm Shanghai Sunmi Technology.

Demand for medical devices has been rising across China’s ageing and increasingly active population, drawing a wave of listings from domestic equipment makers and innovative drugmakers to Hong Kong.

Star Sports is a Beijing-based medical device maker specialising in clinical sports medicine solutions targeting major joints. Its product portfolio spans self-developed implants, equipment, consumables and surgical instruments used for injury treatment, rehabilitation and prevention. BLOOMBERG