Horizon sets price
for IPO next week

Underwriters seek 15 to $17 for
an offering of 15.6 million shares

Horizon Lines Inc. is trying to raise $234 million to $265 million from an initial sale of shares to the public scheduled next week.

Hawaii's second largest shipper announced its impending stock offering in March. Yesterday, Horizon's underwriters, led by Goldman Sachs & Co. and UBS, priced the 15.6 million shares at $15 to $17.

Brian Taylor, vice president and general manager for Horizon in Hawaii, declined to comment on the pricing, citing the regulatory "quiet period" before an IPO, when executives are prohibited from commenting publicly on company operations.

Horizon previously has said it plans to use proceeds from the stock sale to buy out existing shareholders and to pay off debt.

Horizon is currently controlled by Castle Harlan Inc., a private equity firm whose holdings include the Morton's Restaurant Group Inc. Castle Harlan in July paid about $663 million to buy Horizon from the Washington, D.C.-based Carlyle Group, which had acquired Horizon 15 months earlier for $300 million.

Horizon's customers include Costco Wholesale Corp., Johnson & Johnson, PepsiCo Inc., Safeway Inc., Toyota Motor Corp. and Wal-Mart Stores Inc. Horizon's largest competitor in Hawaii is Alexander & Baldwin Inc.'s Matson Navigation shipping unit.