Travel firm Viking Holdings said on Monday it is seeking a valuation of up to US$10.8 billion in its initial public offering in the United States, as it joins a slew of companies looking to take advantage of a rebound in the capital market.

The IPO of roughly 44 million shares will see the company selling 11 million shares and existing shareholders the rest. Viking is targeting a range between US$21 and US$25 apiece to raise up to US$1.1 billion, according to a regulatory filing.

Norges Bank Investment Management, which manages the Norwegian Government Pension Fund, has indicated that it wants to buy up to US$100 million in ordinary shares in the offering, Viking said in the filing.

"Viking is yet another sign of the continued rebound in US capital markets activity. The consumer sector will likely be a core component of the summer IPO market," said Matthew Kennedy of Renaissance Capital, a provider of pre-IPO research and IPO-focused ETFs.

"This will be the year's third billion-dollar IPO, already matching the full-year total from 2023," he added.

After a two-year dry spell, US IPOs are expected to rebound in 2024 on firming bets of a soft landing for the world's largest economy, although the recovery has been uneven so far.

Founded in 1997, Viking started out with four river vessels and now owns a fleet of 92, allowing customers to book voyages to destinations including Antarctica and the Arctic.

Viking will list its shares on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "VIK".

BofA Securities, JP Morgan, UBS Investment Bank, Wells Fargo Securities, HSBC and Morgan Stanley are the lead underwriters for the IPO.

  - Reuters