Solar Capital shares drop in trading debut

NEW YORK (AP) – Shares of investment company Solar Capital Ltd. dropped in its market debut Tuesday after it raised less money than it had hoped for in a weak market for IPOs.

Shares of Solar Capital closed down 50 cents at $18, while broader markets rose. The Dow Jones industrial average finished up 1.5 percent.

Volatile stock markets have made speculation-shy investors careful of buying into IPOs this year. Many companies offering shares have also been troubled by heavy debt loads, no operating history or slow growth.

Four companies have shelved IPOs so far in 2010. Of the nine companies that have gone public, many were forced to accept lower prices than they had hoped for or cut the number of shares offered.

Solar Capital, based in New York, invests in companies with junk-rated debt. It raised $92.5 million before expenses in its initial public offering by offering 5 million shares priced at $18.50 apiece.

That was less than the $19 to $21 a share price range that the New York company had indicated in a regulatory filing last month that it hoped to get.

The IPO was managed by Citigroup, JPMorgan, Morgan Stanley and SunTrust Robinson Humphrey.