Tag: IPO

GoPro Files for IPO: Hopes to Raise at Least $100 Million

GoPro, maker of wearable cameras designed to be used by extreme sports enthusiast and

GoPro GoPublic
GoPro GoPublic

others, has filed documents with regulators of its intention to sell shares of their company. The numbers of shares they intend to sell, and their price, have not yet been disclosed.

The company did say that they hope to pay off a $111 million debt with proceeds from their IPO, and with any additional money they raise, “it may use a portion of the net proceeds to acquire or invest in complementary businesses, technologies or assets.”

Net income in 2013 was $60.6 million, almost twice what it brought in in 2012.  GoPro has sold over 8.5 million HD cameras since they first launched that product in 2009.

The company intends to list on the NASDAQ using the symbol “GPRO.” JP Morgan, Citigroup and British Barclays Bank will be working on the IPO. Nicholas Woodman, founder and CEO, and his family, are the largest shareholders, with 49 percent. The company stated that Woodman was a crucial player in the future success of the company.

“The loss of Mr. Woodman could adversely affect our business, financial condition and operating results,” the company said in a statement

FoxConn, a Taiwan-based manufacturer, has a minority share in GoPro. In 2012 they purchased the company for $200 million. That deal values the camera maker at about $2.25 billion.

Facebook Going Public in Frenzy of Expectation

Mark Zuckerberg

Everyone knows Facebook, as a company, is different. Its unique abilities and exponential growth have changed the way we communicate, socialize, and some say, even think. It is not surprising that the driving force behind this startlingly innovative enterprise is a man who marches to a different drummer, Mark Zuckerberg.

Person of the Century?

The most common adjective used to describe this feisty entrepreneur is “cocky;” coming in a close second is of course is “billionaire.” But as the revolutionary visionary who, at age 26 Time Magazine named “Person of the Year,” Zuckerberg can get away with wearing hoodies to business conventions, and more.

Waiting with Baited Breath

Therefore, as he approaches the moment many in the business and investment world have been waiting for, the IPO launch of Facebook, Zuckerberg’s actions are being scrutinized for some uncommon step making the usually staid initial public offering event into an exciting adventure.

Analysts believe the company could file to sell their stock on the open market as early as this Wednesday. The buzz surrounding the event is deafening; it is being compared to the unprecedented excitement stirred up when Google went public in 2004, and maybe even as exciting as the wild and crazy 1990s.

Users Investing, too?

One thing stock watchers are looking out for is a kind of surprise move by a large percentage of Facebook’s 800 million users to get in on the action since, after all, Facebook is, if it is anything at all, about personal connections.

"Pandemonium is what I expect in terms of demand for this stock," says Scott Sweet, senior managing partner at IPO Boutique, an advisory firm. "I don't think Wall Street would want to anger Facebook users."

Analysts believe that Facebook’s goal is to raise up to $10 billion. That number will put the value of the company at $75 billion to $100 billon, making it one of the largest IPOs ever. Three to four months usually pass before the stock starts trading, after the initial filing.

The next three months is sure to be memorable, for Facebook users, investors, and bystanders on the sidelines.