Monday, July 23, 2012

Proto Labs, Bazaarvoice surge in IPO debuts

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) � Two newly public tech companies saw their shares surge Friday as investors threw their weight behind Proto Labs Inc. and Bazaarvoice Inc.

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Proto Labs PRLB �shares rocketed up $13, or more than 81%, to close at $29 after the company, which makes prototype and first versions of customized parts for product designers and manufacturers, went public at $16 a share. The company raised almost $70 million with its IPO after initially pricing 4.3 million shares above the expected range of $13 to $15 each.

In its Securities and Exchange Commission filings prior to going public, Proto Labs said it earned $18 million on $99 million in sales in 2011. Piper Jaffray and Jefferies were the joint bookrunning managers on the IPO, while Craig-Hallum Capital and William Blair & Co. acted as co-managers on the offering.

Meanwhile, Bazaarvoice BV �shares rose $4.51, or more than 37%, to $16.51 following the company�s public debut.

Bazaarvoice, which creates platforms for businesses to interact with clients and customers via social media, priced at $12 a share after an initial price range of $8 to $10 a share. The company raised $114 million as it sold almost 9.5 million shares.

Bazaarvoice said it lost $17.5 million on $75 million in sales during the nine-month period that ended Jan. 31. The company�s IPO underwriters included Morgan Stanley, Deutsche Bank and Credit Suisse.

The two companies� IPOs came in advance of Yelp Inc.�s YELP �public debut, set for next week. The online user-review company has priced 7.5 million shares in a range of $12 to $14 each. Goldman Sachs, Citigroup and Jefferies & Co. are Yelp�s underwriters.

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