Saudi Aramco's investment bankers could deliver, as soon as Friday, their final recommendations on the valuation of the state-owned energy giant in an initial public offering, with the headline number expected to fall well short of the $2tn targeted by Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, according to people familiar with the matter.

The crown prince has indicated he wants the IPO to value Saudi Arabian Oil, or Aramco, at $2tn. But that target has already met some resistance from company executives working on the planned offering, who have suggested $1.5tn is more realistic.