Apotex Health shares surged in their first day of trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange on Wednesday after the Canadian generic drug maker priced the country’s largest initial public offering in years at C$1.3 billion (US$932 million).
The stock opened at C$28, 17 percent above the offering price of C$24, and later traded at around C$26.76 in morning trading, according to The Wall Street Journal. The company priced the IPO at the top end of its target range after increasing the number of shares being sold, an indication of strong investor demand.
The deal consists of a treasury offering of about 35.4 million shares, raising approximately C$850 million for the company, and a secondary offering of stock by certain shareholders that will raise C$450 million for those investors, the Journal reported. The selling shareholders have granted underwriters the option to buy up to an additional 8.1 million shares at C$24 apiece to cover overallotments.
Apotex began trading on an “if, as and when issued” basis under the symbol APTX. The Toronto Stock Exchange conditionally approved the listing, and the closing of the IPO is expected on or about June 16, the Journal said.
The offering is one of the largest in Canadian history, ranking just behind Telus International’s 2021 IPO, which raised nearly US$1.1 billion including overallotment shares, according to data compiled by London Stock Exchange Group. Other major Canadian IPOs in recent years include GFL Environmental’s US$1.43 billion listing in 2020 and PrairieSky Royalty’s US$1.54 billion IPO in 2014, the Journal reported.
The strong market reception signals a recovery in Canada’s IPO market, which has seen increased activity in 2026 after several subdued years. The rebound has been fueled by record highs in Toronto stock indexes and a recovery in business and investor confidence, even as concerns about trade relations between Canada and the United States persist.
Toronto-based Apotex is Canada’s largest domestic pharmaceutical company, with regional offices in the United States, Mexico, India, and other countries. Its product portfolio includes generic drugs, biosimilar treatments, over-the-counter health products, and branded pharmaceuticals.
The IPO is being conducted through a syndicate of underwriters led by RBC Capital Markets, TD Securities, and Bank of Nova Scotia as co-lead managers and lead bookrunners, joined by a number of other financial institutions, according to the Journal.
The broader market backdrop remained supportive on Wednesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average stood at 50,872.11, according to Federal Reserve data, reflecting the solid equity market conditions that have helped fuel IPO activity across North America. The U.S. broader underemployment rate, as measured by the U-6 indicator, was 8.1% in May, near historic lows.