Marketo raises US$79m in IPO listing

Cloud-based marketing automation software vendor, Marketo, has raised US$79 million in its initial public offering (IPO) in the US, marking the next phase in its growth strategy.

The company filed for a US$75m IPO in April and officially entered the Nasdaq Stock Exchange as ‘MKTO’ on 17 May, offering 6.1 million shares at $13 per share. Of these, 5.75 million were available to the public, raising US$74m. Since launching in 2006, the business has also raised $107m in venture capital funding to expand its cloud-based software offering.

Marketo now has 2300 customers, 27,000 online community members and 370 employees. In a statement to customers and partners, president and CEO, Phil Fernandes, said the IPO marked an exciting turning point in the company’s history.

“In today’s data-centric, multi-channel business environment, marketing professionals are being pushed to fundamentally change how they engage and interact with prospects and customers,” he stated.

“Marketo is dedicated to providing a marketing software platform that enables organisations to do just that and engage in modern relationship marketing. Today’s offering is just one step along the journey towards this goal, and I’m more excited than ever about the opportunities in marketing today.”

At time of writing, Marketo shares were trading at $24.40. According to insight firm Seeking Alpha, the firm was valued at $869m at close of trade on 20 May, when shares reached a high of $26.70.

“Marketo is transforming marketing with its innovative platform, which helps customers better target and execute marketing strategies that have greater and more meaningful impact on their businesses,” commented senior vice-president of Nasdaq Corporate Client Group, Nelson Griggs.

"We congratulate Marketo on its successful listing and look forward to a long and enduring partnership in the years to come."

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