Johannesburg - South African drug store chain Dis-Chem made its debut on the Johannesburg bourse on Friday, with its shares opening at R23.26 and valuing it at around R20 billion.
Dis-Chem's share price subsequently stumbled slightly to R21.50.
Founded by chief executive Ivan Saltzman and his wife Lynette, Dis-Chem is tapping an uncertain equity market as it looks to take on larger rival Clicks Group and retailers Shoprite and Pick n Pay, which also have pharmaceutical retail operations.
Dis-Chem said earlier this week it had sold a 27.5 percent stake to investors at R18.50 per share, valuing the company at almost R16 billion.
Dis-Chem, which runs about 100 stores, has grown from a start-up in 1978 to a major health products retailer with annual sales of more than 15 billion rand.
REUTERS