Another company from the 2021 IPO rush has come to an inglorious end, with Parsley Box Group PLC (AIM:MEAL) deciding to delist from the market only a year and half after listing.
The ready meals provider is arranging a shareholder meeting to approve the move after it was unable to attract funding.
Shares in the company, which were floated in March 2021 at 200p for an initial market cap of £83mln before going on to lose over 99% of their value to a recent low of 1.20p, jumped 21% this morning to 2p.
Directors said they had "assessed the various potential sources of capital available to the company to fund its medium term growth plans" and decided to delist based on an "assessment of the public market liquidity and valuation volatility of the ordinary shares and a cost versus benefit analysis of maintaining the company's status as a publicly traded company".
It estimated a cancellation of its shares and re-registration as a private limited company will cut administrative and adviser costs by about £400,000 a year.
In the summer, the company reported a 45% drop in order numbers in the first half to 212,000 and lowered its sales guidance for the year, with losses narrowing as it cut marketing spending and efficiencies were said to have offset logistics and supply chain inflation.
Parsley Box's cancellation comes hot on the heels of the collapse of fellow 'class of 21' member Made.com into administration earlier this month, while other alumni such as In The Style, Revolution Beauty and Seraphine have seen their valuations collapse.
“Another day and another recent IPO goes up in smoke," said Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell.
He said Parsley Box has "served up a litany of disasters for shareholders and has effectively lost any support from the market", with a "very sorry attempt at a fundraise" earlier this year when management had to step in.
“While the cost of living crisis didn’t help, the proposition behind Parsley Box always looked a little shaky. Why would people pay more to have premium ready meals delivered when they could easily get them from supermarkets at a much cheaper price?
“The emergence from the pandemic, which had helped drive order growth as the company’s baby boomer demographic was stuck at home, saw orders slow markedly."
He said 2021 "is proving to be anything but a vintage year for IPOs".