NEW YORK - Vitamin Shoppe Inc and Addus HomeCare Corp are expected to price their initial public offerings on Tuesday after the bell, seeking to break what has been a streak of disappointing IPOs by companies owned by private equity.

Vitamin Shoppe, a North Bergen, New Jersey-based operator of 434 health supplement stores in the United States, is set to become the first bricks-and-mortar retailer to go public in two years.

The retailer is expecting to sell 9.1 million shares for between $14 and $16 apiece and start trading on the New York Stock Exchange on Wednesday under the symbol VSI.

Despite its high debt, its growth during the economic crisis could entice investors, one analyst said.

Their same store sales have grown more than four percent despite the recession, said Nick Einhorn, an analyst with Connecticut-based investment firm Renaissance Capital.

Vitamin Shoppe grew at an annual clip of 11.3 percent between 2005 and 2008, when it reached sales of $601.5 million. During that time, it opened 171 new stores, according to its prospectus. It has been profitable since 2006.

In its prospectus, Vitamin Shoppe said it estimates it could eventually reach 900 stores in the United States.

Still, most of the private equity backed IPOs launched since mid-September have stumbled on investor fears the owners are dumping their portfolio companies rather than positioning them for growth.

There could be some resistance because investors are wary of whether the IPO is being done for the right reasons or just as an exit, Einhorn said.

Vitamin Shoppe, which is selling 84.3 percent of the shares in the offering, estimates the IPO will yield net proceeds of $107 million based on a mid-range price of $15 per share. It plans to use the money to redeem preferred shares held by its backers and to pay down some of its debt.

Irving Place Capital Management LP, which bought Vitamin Shoppe in 2002, owns 80 percent of the shares, a stake that will fall to 54.5 percent after the IPO.

The Vitamin Shoppe IPO is being managed by JP Morgan, Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Barclays Capital. The underwriters will have the option of buying another 1.4 million shares from Vitamin Shoppe's selling shareholders.

Separately, Addus HomeCare Corp, an Illinois-based provider of home health care, plans to sell 5 million shares in its IPO on Tuesday and expects them to price for between $11 and $13.
Addus HomeCare shares are expected to begin trading on Nasdaq on Wednesday under the symbol ADUS.

Addus HomeCare's largest shareholder is private equity firm Eos Funds, whose stake in the company will fall to 39.8 percent from 78.9 percent.

Its clients include federal, state and local government agencies, the Veterans Health Administration, commercial insurers and private individuals, according to its prospectus.

In the first half of 2009, Addus HomeCare had sales of $126.8 million, up 14 percent over the same period in 2008, with net income of $12 million.

The Addus HomeCare IPO is being managed by Robert W. Baird & Co and Oppenheimer & Co, who have the option to purchase an additional 750,000 shares. (Reporting by Phil Wahba in New York; editing by Andre Grenon)

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