TORONTO (Reuters) - Canadian department store operator Hudson's Bay Co <HBC.TO> said on Monday it had completed its C$365.1 million ($367.8 million)initial public offering.
HBC, which owns Lord & Taylor in the United States and Hudson's Bay in Canada, began trading last Tuesday on the Toronto Stock Exchange on a "when-issued" basis. Shares began trading on a regular basis at the open on Monday.
In light trading on Monday morning, the stock was at C$16.85, flat with Friday's close and 0.9 percent below the C$17 mark at which the offering priced.
The offering of 21.48 million shares was priced at the bottom of the company's already lowered range of C$17 to C$18 per share. That pegs HBC's market capitalization at about C$2 billion.
Founded in 1670, Hudson's Bay began as a fur trading business, granted control of a significant part of what is now Canada King Charles II. It is North America's oldest continually operating company.
The firm went private in 2006, as shoppers fled to U.S.-based heavyweights like Wal-Mart Stores Inc <WMT.N> and specialty retailers.
NRDC Equity Partners bought out HBC's other investors in 2008, and integrated it with Lord & Taylor, which has 48 stores across the United States.
Both chains are facing stiff competition. In the United States, Lord & Taylor competes with retailers like a resurgent Macy's Inc <M.N>, while in Canada, Target Corp <TGT.N> is rolling out its first stores in the spring.
(Reporting Allison Martell and Euan Rocha; Editing Jeffrey Benkoe)