December 14, 2006, Oxford, MA--After IPG Photonics announced the pricing of its initial public offering of 9 million shares of common stock at $16.50 per share (see www.laserfocusworld.com/articles/279683), Reuters reported later in the day that IPG rose as much as 56 percent to $25.70 as investors were attracted by its revenue growth and increased applications for its products.
The Reuters information came from Ben Holmes, publisher of Morningnotes.com, an independent research firm based in Boulder, CO. The IPG shares are now quoted on the Nasdaq Global Market under the symbol "IPGP."
IPG trades at 64 times annualized earnings at $25 a share. That is pricey compared to Rofin-Sinar Technologies Inc., a builder of laser systems as well as lasers that trades at 16 times, according to Reuters Estimates. The high earnings multiple is driven by a hunger for companies with top-line growth among investors willing to bet on increased usage of cutting-edge products, said Francis Gaskins, president of IPO Desktop.
On Tuesday, the 9-million-share offering sold for $16.50 per share, compared with an estimated $13.50 to $15.50 forecast range, raising $148.5 million. IPG sold 6.2 million shares, while selling stockholders, including Chairman and CEO Valentin Gapontsev and members of the board, sold about 2.8 million shares.
For more information, visit www.ipgphotonics.com.