GoDaddy Inc, one of the best providers of domain names and website hosting, seeks to appraise in so far as $2.87 billion worth of shares to the public for the first time.
The company is offering 22 million shares at $17 to $19 apiece for, to raise as much as $418 million, a regulatory filing shows. GoDaddy is seeking a market value between $2.57 billion and $2.87 billion, according to Thursday’s filing.
GoDaddy’s IPO comes more than three years after a group led by KKR & Co. and Silver Lake Management acquired the Scottsdale, Arizona-based company for $2.25 billion. Now that the price range is set, GoDaddy can officially begin marketing the sale to investors.
GoDaddy is seeking a valuation at a discount to other Web-services providers. At the high end of the range, GoDaddy would fetch a multiple of about 2.1 times last year’s sales, while Endurance International Group Holdings Inc., which provides Internet hosting, trades at 3.7 times and Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp., a consulting firm, trades at 3.1 times, data compiled by Bloomberg show.
In 2014, GoDaddy posted $1.39 billion in revenue, a 23 percent jump from the prior year. Its net loss narrowed to $143.3 million over the same period, from $200 million in 2013, the filing showed.
GoDaddy plans to use the proceeds for a one-time payment to KKR, Silver Lake and other current owners, as well as to repay debt and for general working purposes.
Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Citigroup Inc. are managing the offering. GoDaddy plans to list its shares on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol GDDY.
