Technology

GoPro IPO: Lights, Cameras, Plenty of Action

GoPro Image
GoPro S-1 Filing
GoPro Inc. (NASDAQ: GPRO) rocketed through its initial public offering price (IPO) of $24 Thursday morning, rising more than 30% to trade near $32, after hitting a high of $33. The hands-free, high-definition video camera maker priced 17.8 million shares at the top of its expected range Wednesday night.

At the IPO price, GoPro raised about $427 million at a valuation of about $2.96 billion. Half the 17.8 million shares were sold by the company and half by selling shareholders. Underwriters, including J.P. Morgan, Citigroup and Barclays have a 30-day option on an additional 2.67 million shares.

The company will have both Class A and Class B shares, with the latter shares entitled to 10 votes per share and Class A shares 1 vote per share. Holders of Class B shares will hold more than 98% of the voting power, and nearly 73% of those shares will be held by executive officers and directors. The CEO will hold 47.7% of the voting power in the company.

GoPro’s revenue jumped from $526 million in 2012 to $986 million in 2013, but profit margins narrowed last year and R&D costs doubled. Camera owners have been posting videos to YouTube where more than 500 million viewers have seen a GoPro-created video. The company plans to try to monetize these videos by collecting fees through partnerships with the Xbox One, YouTube and Virgin America.

Shares traded at $31.92 shortly before noon, up more than 33% from the IPO price.

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