HONG KONG—The operator of the Universal Studios Japan
theme park in Osaka plans to list on the Tokyo Stock Exchange as
early as September, a person with knowledge of the deal said.
USJ Co. has a current valuation of around $5 billion, the person
said. The company's valuation has soared since the theme-park
operator opened a new attraction last year dedicated to Harry
Potter, the world-wide children's book phenomenon about a boy
wizard. The Wizarding World of Harry Potter has drawn millions of
visitors.
The possible size of the deal is unclear and depends on market
conditions when the IPO launches, the person said. Its listing will
come as two other big IPOs loom: Japan's government is planning a
multibillion-dollar float of Japan Post Holdings Co, a provider of
postal, banking and insurance services, sometime in the next
several months, while smartphone messaging application Line Corp.
is preparing for a Tokyo and possibly New York listing this summer.
Real-estate investment trust Kenedix Retail REIT Corp, which raised
$506 million in February, is the biggest IPO in Japan this year so
far, according to data provider Dealogic.
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Asian private-equity firm MBK
Partners are major investors in the firm, the person said. A
spokesman for USJ declined to comment.
Universal Studios Japan opened in 2001 and made its debut in
2007 on the Tokyo Stock Exchange's Mothers market for startup
companies. But struggling with decreasing visitors, USJ was
delisted in 2009 when Goldman injected capital into the
company.
In January, USJ said the theme park in Osaka had drawn its 10
millionth visitor since the beginning of the fiscal year in April
2014. The theme-park operator succeeded in boosting visitor numbers
last year, thanks to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, which
opened in July. The attraction features a village and castle
inspired by J.K. Rowling's popular book and movie series. Other
attractions in the theme park include Spider-Man, Sesame Street and
Jurassic Park.
Atsuko Fukase contributed to this article.
Write to Yvonne Lee at yvonne.lee@wsj.com
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