Last night, Boston-based marketing automation company Klaviyo priced its highly anticipated initial public offering (IPO) at $30 per share, surpassing its previous price range by $1. This move has proven to be a triumph for the late-stage startup, as it garners a fully diluted valuation of approximately $9.2 billion. This valuation is not far from its last private valuation of $9.5 billion, showcasing Klaviyo’s strong performance in the market.
Key Takeaway
Klaviyo’s IPO pricing and successful trading performance signal a positive market reception and set a benchmark for future software IPOs. This indicates that late-stage startups and unicorns should assess their own valuations based on Klaviyo’s achievements, considering the dynamic nature of the tech market.
Klaviyo, known for its cutting-edge technology in the marketing space, made an impressive start on the trading floor with shares initially trading at around $37. Currently, the stock is valued at $35.51 per share, reflecting an increase of nearly 18%. The successful public debut of Klaviyo comes as no surprise, considering the recent trend of positive first-day performance among newly-listed companies.
The Significance of Klaviyo’s IPO for the Software Industry
Defending or nearly defending a 2021-era valuation in a 2023 IPO is a notable achievement, given the substantial fluctuations in the value of technology companies over the past year and a half. Venture capitalist Jason Lemkin has seized upon Klaviyo’s pricing and early trading success to underscore its significance as the “ultimate” benchmark for other software companies planning to go public in 2023 and 2024. According to Lemkin, private tech companies are likely to be valued at a lower level compared to the newly public Klaviyo.
