SurveyMonkey, a US online-polling services provider, filed for an initial public offering with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on August 29, 2018. The company made the filing through its parent SVMK Inc. seeking to list its shares on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the ticker “SVMK.”
BofA Marrill Lynch, J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., and Allen & Co. are the lead underwriters for the offering. Its paperwork listed the offering at $100 million, though that is likely a placeholder figure that does not necessarily reflect the final offering amount.
The firm whose board of directors include Sheryl Sandberg and Serena Williams, has managed to raise about $600 million through a series of equity funding from investors, such as Tiger Global, which has a pre-IPO stake of 29.3%. It plans to use the IPO proceeds for working capital and paying some income-tax obligations, as well as to partially repay its outstanding debts.
Founded 19 years ago, SurveyMonkey offers a suite of paid backend programs comprising of data representation, data analysis, bias elimination, and sample selection tools, as well as free, customizable polls. The company also offers more large-scale enterprise solutions for businesses interested in consumer-focused marketing, data analysis, and brand management.
The San Mateo, California-based tech firm derives most of its revenues from its subscriber base composed of 600,000 paying customers. In its prospectus, the company explained how its viral surveys help it to acquire new customers without breaking the bank. It is also currently planning to convert its unpaid customers to paying ones.
The company has hit positive free cash flows that will be a huge selling point as it gives potential investors a first look into its financials. In the first six months of 2018, the company posted a net loss of $27.18 million on revenue of $121 million, compared to a net loss of $19 million and $106.5 million revenue, in the same period last year. SurveyMonkey had a net loss of $24 million on $219 million revenues in all of fiscal 2017.
Some industry analysts argue that the firm ought to have developed some level of profitability and maturity in its close to two decades’ existence before going public.
SurveyMonkey Inc. Profile
SurveyMonkey Inc. develops online survey software to Fortune 100 companies, other businesses, academic institutions, organizations, and individuals worldwide. It offers SurveyMonkey that enables users to design and send professional surveys, and perform data analysis, as well as support various projects, teams, and organizations.
It also offers SurveyMonkey CX, a Net Promoter Score (NPS) solution to collect, understand, and act on customer feedback; and Wufoo, which helps users to create contact forms, online surveys, and invitations. The company also provides SurveyMonkey Audience to get real-time feedback from people around the world.
The company was founded by Ryan Finley in 1999. It has additional offices in Portland, Oregon; Seattle, Washington; Dublin, Ireland; Ottawa, Canada; and Sydney, Australia. –Bloomber
Sources
https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1739936/000119312518261892/d494258ds1.htm
