Maps Image Provider DigitalGlobe Files For $250 Million IPO
This story was written by Joseph Weisenthal.
DigitalGlobe, a provider of satellite imagery for maps, whose clients include Google (NSDQ: GOOG) Maps and Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT) Virtual Earth, filed for an IPO of up to $250 million this week. How, you might be asking, is this company going public now, during a rather chilly period for IPOs? Well, it's solidly profitable, having earned $37.9 million in 2007 (excluding a major income tax benefit), on revenues of $151.7 million. From the year-ago period, revenues were up 43 percent from 106.8 million. The company's biggest customer, accounting for 58 percent of revenue, is actually the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) of the United States government. It also works with vendors like Garmin and Navteq. And although it doesn't specify them by name, it notes that its services are used by certain videogame developers, to realistically render images of the earth.
Underwriters for the offering are UBS, JPMorgan, Citi, Morgan Stanley, Lehman and Jefferies & Co. The largest institutional holders is Morgan Stanley, which owns over 38 percent of the company's stock.
By Joseph Weisenthal