Groupon prices above top end of IPO range
DAILY deals site Groupon has priced shares in its initial public offering at $20, above the initial range after seeing strong demand, a market source said last night.
The company sold 35m shares for $20 each, raising $700m (£436m), the source said. Groupon is understood to have raised both the price and the quantity in response to higher-than-expected investor demand.
The company had previously filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission to sell 30m shares for $16 to $18 each.
The firm hopes to begin trading on the Nasdaq today. The float values the company in the region of $12bn.
Chief executive Andrew Mason and his executive team have spent almost two weeks on the road pitching to investors and addressing criticism about a replicable business model, slowing growth and accounting concerns.
To pull the deal off, the company has cut its valuation by about half.