The IPO Buzz: The Smell of Money

Putting it another way, the latest batch of S-1/A filings are giving off the distinctive smell of money.

 

To push any filing through the SEC costs a company big bucks. It involves legal, accounting, printing and other expenses. Lawyers, accountants, printers et al do not do pro bono work for somebody planning to go public. If a company is not looking to move from the IPO pipeline to the IPO calendar, then why incur these expenses?

 

Beginning with last week, the S-1/A filings started perking up. IPO candidates began filing update amendments reporting 2010 year-end financials and some announced expected pricing terms. Here’s a sampling of what came down.

 

On March 1, Global Market Group Limited (GMC – proposed), a Guangzhou, China-based provider of B2B e-commerce platforms for Chinese manufacturers, released its 2010 year-end financials, posted pricing terms and an expected trading date.

 

For the year ending Dec. 31, 2010, Global Market reported net income of $2.4 million on revenues of $26.7 million, compared with a net loss of $2.6 million on revenues of $16.4 million for the same period a year ago.

 

The company plans to price 10.98 million American Depositary Shares at $11 to $13 each on Wednesday evening, March 16, to trade on Thursday, March 17.

 

Global Market will offer 5.49 million shares and selling shareholders will offer 5.49 million shares.

 

On March 2, Cornerstone OnDemand (CSOD – proposed), a Santa Monica, California-based software provider of learning and talent management solutions, released its 2010 year-end financials, posted pricing terms and gave an expected trading date.

 

For the year ending Dec. 31, 2010, Cornerstone reported a net loss of $48.4 million on revenues of $46.7 million, compared with a net loss of $8.4 million on revenues of $29.3 million for the same period a year ago.

 

The company plans to price 10.5 million shares at $9 to $11 each on Thursday evening, March 17, to trade on Friday, March 18.

 

Cornerstone will offer 7.5 million shares and selling shareholders will offer 3 million shares.

 

And here are a few IPOs worth watching for as the market waits for the next shoe to drop – an S-1/A filing that gives pricing terms with a offering date.

 

On Feb. 28, Spirit Airlines (SAVE – proposed), a Miramar, Florida-based ultra low-cost, low-fare airline providing transportation services to and from South Florida, the Caribbean and Latin America, released its 2010 year-end financials. The pricing date is to be determined.

 

For the year ending Dec. 31, 2010, Spirit Airlines reported net income of $72.5 million on total revenues of $781.3 million, compared with net income of $83.7 million on total revenues of $700 million for the same period a year ago.

 

On March 4, Skype S.A., a Luxemburg-based provider of real-time communication over the Internet, released its 2010 year-end financials. The pricing date is to be determined.

 

For the year ending Dec. 31, 2010, Skype reported a net loss of $6.9 million on revenues of $859.8 million, compared with a net loss of $417.5 million on revenues of $718.9 million for the same period a year ago.

 

On March 7, RPX Corporation (RPXC – proposed) a San Francisco-based provider of patent risk solutions to assist corporations in managing their exposure to patent litigation, released its 2010 year-end financials. The pricing date is to be determined.

 

For the year ending Dec. 31, 2010, RPX reported net income of $13.9 million on revenues of $94.9 million, compared with net income of $1.9 million on revenues of $32.8 million for the same period a year ago.

 

The company will be offering all the stock in the underwriting.

 

On March 7, Zipcar (ZIP – proposed), a Cambridge, Massachusetts-based operator of a car-sharing network providing a “wheels when you want them” service, released its 2010 year-end financials. The pricing date is to be determined.

 

For the year ending Dec. 31, 2010, Zipcar reported a net loss of $14.1 million on revenues of $186.1 million, compared with a net loss of $4.6 million on revenues of $131.2 million for the same period a year ago.

 

Both the company and selling shareholders will be offering stock in the underwriting.

 

And the drumbeat continued. On March 10, TMS International (TMS – proposed), a Glassport, Pennsylvania-based provider of outsourced industrial services to steel mills, and, on March 11, ServiceSource International (SREV – proposed), a San Francisco company offering solutions to technology companies to manage their service contracts, released their 2010 year-end financials, posted pricing terms and set an expected trading date for their IPOs.

 

Each is expected to be priced and traded next week.