Marketing firm Klaviyo eyes $6.8 billion valuation in US IPO

(Reuters) -Klaviyo is seeking a valuation of up to $6.8 billion in its initial public offering (IPO) in the United States, the marketing firm said on Monday, as it becomes the latest company to tap a growing wave of stock market listings.

SoftBank-backed chip designer Arm Holdings Ltd, grocery delivery service Instacart and biopharmaceutical firm Neumora Therapeutics have teed up their IPO plans, signaling a thaw in the market for new issues that had remained moribund for nearly two years.

Boston-based Klaviyo, which operates an email marketing platform, and its selling shareholders are offering 19.2 million shares at $25 to $27 apiece and are aiming to raise $518.4 million at the top end of the range.

However, the company’s proposed valuation is a climb down from the $9.15 billion pre-money valuation at which Klaviyo last raised capital in 2021, reflecting a broader gloom in the technology startup ecosystem.

Klaviyo, whose co-founder and CEO Andrew Bialecki holds a 38% stake, also counts Canadian e-commerce giant Shopify (NYSE:) and affiliates of investment company Summit Partners as its shareholders.

Founded in 2012, the company helps store and analyze data for e-commerce brands that enables them to send out personalized marketing emails and messages to potential customers.

Klaviyo posted a 51% growth in revenue to $164.6 million for the three months ended June 30.

Certain funds and accounts managed by asset manager BlackRock (NYSE:) and entities affiliated with AllianceBernstein (NYSE:) L.P. have separately indicated an interest in buying a total of up to $100 million in the offering, Klaviyo said.

It expects to trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol “KVYO”.

Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and Citigroup (NYSE:) are lead underwriters for the offering.

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