Daunt has eye on Waterstones stock exchange listing 

James Daunt, managing director of Waterstones and Barnes & Noble, has told the Financial Times a stock exchange listing “would be a very sensible place” for the bookseller group.

He said he last explored an initial public offering (IPO) of Waterstones in 2018 ahead of its sale to private equity group Elliott but that the timing was not right given the potential acquisition of Barnes & Noble, which Elliott bought the following year, putting Daunt in charge of both.

Daunt told the Financial Times: “In terms of the ownership of a business which is growing, but not now dramatically, I would have thought it would be in the public markets,” he said. “We will pay a very nice dividend for a pension fund-type investment rather than being in private equity.”

He went on to add that a workforce that “is extremely vocational and extremely committed” also lends itself to a “stable ownership focused on the medium to long term”.

Waterstones’ profits after taxation soared 1,352% to £42.1m in the year to end April 2022 from £2.9m in 2021 – a massive recovery after the company’s finances plunged during multiple lockdowns.

The retailer has opened six new stores this year, following the opening of 13 locations last year.

The Financial Times cited Waterstones and Barnes & Noble together as spanning nearly 1,000 stores and generating close to $4bn in sales.

The Financial Times reported a person “familiar with Elliott’s plans” said that there were no “near-term plans to IPO but it was one of a number of options for the future”. Elliott declined to comment.