Cloudflare Raises $525M in Its Initial Public Offering

Investors might be worried about the turmoil in the markets due to the protracted trade war between the United States and China, but that has not hampered the spate of initial public offerings. Uber and Lyft went public earlier this year in big-ticket IPOs, while WeWork is also going to have its IPO soon and recently Cloudflare had its much-anticipated listing on Thursday. The company is an integral part of the internet ecosystem and is best known for providing websites with the vital service of protecting as well of distributing content. The company, which is based out of San Francisco, has provided its unique services to a wide range of companies over the years and in its IPO, it managed to perform well. In the beginning, Cloudflare had marketed its shares within the price band of $10 to $12, however only a day ahead of the IPO the company moved the price band to $12 to $14.

While it is true that such a development only a day ahead of the IPO can often backfire, Cloudflare managed to come out of it with its head held high. The company sold a total of 35 million shares on its listing day, and each went for $15, thereby helping Cloudflare raise a total of $525 million. The company’s filings at the United States Securities and Exchange Commission with regards to its outstanding shares have revealed that it currently has a market valuation of $4.4 billion. While the IPO performance is definitely a feather in the cap for Cloudflare, it is also important to note that it has an impressive business model.

Around 100 companies from the Fortune 1000 pay the company for its services. On the other hand, Cloudflare has also stated that in the second quarter alone, the company thwarted 44 billion online threats a day. The metric is an indication of the sort of work the company has done as a protective service, and it is a fair assumption that its business is only going to grow in the years to come. During the first half of 2019, Cloudflare generated revenues of $129 million and that reflects a significant jump from the $87 million that is generated in the first half of 2018. Losses widened to $37 million from $32 million and indicated that it would not be too long before it could become profitable.