Even amid a pandemic and protests, investors are hungry for new investments.
Shares of ZoomInfo, a database for business and sales contacts, soared as much as 90% in trading Thursday after the company raised $935 million in an initial public offering of some 44.5 million shares. While the amount raised implied a market cap of about $8 billion, trading in public markets values it at above $14 billion.
The fundraise comes after Warner Music Group jumpstarted the IPO market after a pandemic-induced drought with the largest offering of 2020 yet on Wednesday, valuing the entertainment company at $15.4 billion.
While ZoomInfo paused its plans for an IPO as the coronavirus roiled global markets, the company saw record demand in April as business shifted their sales efforts online.
“As the pandemic hit, we said the markets aren’t in a place [to IPO],” CEO Henry Schuck told Term Sheet. But as markets settled, “investors were telling us…the market would like to see a company like this debut on it.”
What’s more: Shift4 Payments is expected to list today, while car marketplace Vroom is expected to list next week. Amwell, a telemedicine company, filed confidentially for an IPO earlier this week too.
But the dramatic upswing in ZoomInfo’s stock on the public market ignites the debate over whether shares were mispriced—leaving capital on the table for the company. In one sense, the company could have raised nearly double what it actually did. On the other, a perceived selloff could be unbearable in the currently bizarre market conditions.
Schuck says he has no gripes.
“I’m just not looking at the stock price today,” the executive said.
It’s also a good deal for the likes of BlackRock, Dragoneer, and Fidelity, which said they would acquire up to $100 million each of shares in ZoomInfo at the offering price.
Great Hill Partners acquired ZoomInfo for $240 million in 2017 before selling the stake for an undisclosed amount to Discoverorg, then backed by Carlyle and TA Associates—creating the current company.
Based on a back-of-the-envelope calculation, TA Associates now owns a stake in the company worth $4.4 billion while Carlyle holds a stake worth $3.8 billion. Notably the holdings are in Class B and C shares of ZoomInfo, which hold different voting rights but convert on a one-to-one basis with currently trading Series A shares.
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VENTURE DEALS
- Everest Medicines, a Shanghai-based biopharmaceutical company focused on patients in Greater China and other parts of Asia, raised $310 million in Series C funding. Investors Janchor Partners, RA Capital Management, and Hillhouse Capital led the round in tranches.
- Athira Pharma, Inc., a Seattle, Wash.-based clinical-stage company developing innovative therapies for Alzheimer’s, raised $85 million Series B in funding. Perceptive Advisors led the round and was joined by investors including RTW Investments, Viking Global Investors, Venrock Healthcare Capital Partners, Franklin Templeton, Rock Springs Capital, LifeSci Venture Partners, Surveyor Capital, Highside Capital Management, Logos Capital, funds managed by Janus Henderson Investors, Sofinnova Investments, Avidity Partners.
- Hyperscience, a New York-based data automation company, raised $60 million in Series C funding. Bessemer Venture Partners led the round, and was joined by investors including Tiger Global Management, Stripes, FirstMark Capital, Battery Ventures, Felicis Ventures, 3KVC, Gaingels, and Penna & Company. Read more.
- Alpha Tau Medical, a Tel Aviv, Israel-based developer of radiation-based cancer therapies, raised $26 million in Series B funding. Investors included Shavit Capital, Medison Ventures, and OurCrowd.
- RiskIQ, a San Francisco, Calif.-based application security company, raised $15 million in Series D funding. National Grid Partners led the round and was joined by investors including Summit Partners, Battery Ventures, Georgian Partners, and MassMutual Ventures. Read more.
- Atom Power, a Charlotte, N.C.-based maker of a digital circuit breaker, raised $17.8 million in Series B funding. Investors included Valor Equity Partners, Rockwell Automation, ABB Technology Ventures, and Atreides Management.
- Cloud9 Technologies, a New York-based cloud-based communications company, raised $17.5 million in Series B funding. UBS led the round and was joined by investors including J.P. Morgan and Barclays.
- React Mobile, a Seattle-based employee safety platform, raised $6 million in funding from Brady Corp. (NYSE:BRC).
- Searchable.ai, a San Francisco-based conversational search engine, raised $4 million in seed funding. Susquehanna International Group and Omicron Media led the round and was joined by investors including Defy Partners and NextView Ventures.
- Powerlytics, a Doylestown, Penn.-based data provider, raised $4 million in funding from Brewer Lane Ventures.
- Routinify, a Denver-based remote healthcare company, raised $1.5 million in funding. Resolute Capital Partners led the round.
- Coastal Cloud, a Palm Coast, Fla.-based Salesforce consulting partner, raised an undisclosed amount of funding from Sverica Capital Management and Salesforce Ventures.
- Caspian, a U.K.-based financial crime investigation startup, raised an undisclosed amount from Nasdaq Ventures.
PRIVATE EQUITY
- KKR and Ampersand Capital Partners offered to acquire Oxford Immunotec Global, a U.K.-based medical diagnostics company that develops tests to identify tuberculosis, for $400 million, per Reuters. Read more.
- Kinderhook Industries acquired Original One Parts, a Dallas-based provider of recycled and refinished auto parts. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
OTHERS
- Mubadala Investment Co. plans to buy a 1.85% stake in Jio Platforms for 90.93 billion rupees ($1.21 billion).
- Chegg, Inc. (NYSE: CHGG) acquired Mathway, a math solver, for $100 million in cash.
- Medley Capital Corp., the business development company, is seeking a buyer after its deal with Sierra Income Corp. collapsed last month, per Bloomberg. Read more.
- Puig will buy a majority stake in Charlotte Tilbury Beauty, a British makeup brand.
OTHERS
- Comark Holdings, a Canadian retailer backed by Stern Partners, plans to restructure. Read more.
IPOs
- Legend Biotech, a Somerset, N.J.-based cell therapy oncology biotech spinning out of GenScript, raised $424 million in an offering of 18.4 million ADSs priced at $23 apiece. It posted revenue of $57.3 million in 2019 and a loss of $133 million. It plans to list on the Nasdaq as “LEGN.” Read more.
- Shift4 Payments, a Allentown payment processing company focused on the hospitality sector, raised $345 million in an offering of 15 million shares priced at $23 apiece. It posted revenues of $731.4 million in 2019 and losses of $58.1 million. Searchlight Capital Partners backs the firm. It plans to list on the NYSE as “FOUR.” Read more.
- Dada Nexus, a Shanghai-based grocery delivery platform, raised $320 million in an offering of 20 million ADSs at $16 apiece. It posted revenue of $437.8 million in 2019 and a loss of $348.1 million. JD Group (51.4%), Sequoia Capital China (11.4%), and Walmart (10.8%) back the firm. JD.com and Walmart intend to acquire $90 million worth of ADSs in the offering. It plans to list on the Nasdaq as “DADA.” Read more.
- Applied Molecular Transport, a South San Francisco-based biotech developing oral therapies for inflammatory diseases, raised $154 million in an offering of 11 million shares priced at $14 apiece. EPIQ Capaital Group (25.9% pre-offering) and Founders Fund (20.7%) back the firm. It plans to list on the Nasdaq as “AMTI.” Read more.
- Calliditas Therapeutics, a Stockholm-based biotech developing therapies for kidney disease, raised $90 million in an offering of 4.6 million ADS priced at about $19.50 apiece. It posted sales of $184.8 million in 2019 and a loss of $32.6 million. Stiftelsen Industrifonden (14.9% pre-offering), Linc (12.5%), and Investinor (10.7%) back the firm. It plans to list on the Nasdaq as “CALT.” Read more.
EXITS
- VMware (NYSE: VMW) acquired Lastline, a cloud security solution. Thomvest Ventures backed Lastline.
- Bynder acquired We Adapt, which helps brands with video content creation. CNBB Venture Partners and Tablomonto backed We Adapt.
F+FS
- Stellex Capital plans to raise $1.75 billion for its second fund. Read more.
- Petra Capital Partners raised $208 million for Petra Growth Fund IV.
- CAPZA acquired Time for Growth, a Paris-based private equity firm. Read more.
