Rosetta Stone Prices IPO: Stock Up 40%

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on April 16, 2009 - 8:07am.

Arlington, Va. - Shares of Rosetta Stone soared nearly 40% by midday Thursday in their market debut, hours after the developer of language learning software and online services priced its initial public offering (IPO) at $18 a share -- above its estimated range of $15-$17 -- to raise $112.5 million.

It marked the first time in nearly a year that a U.S. company has priced above its expected range, as well as the first venture-backed IPO in the DC area in a year.

The company sold 6.25 million shares -- including half from current stockholders -- with its stock now trading under the symbol "RST" on the New York Stock Exchange.

Rosetta Stone, which was acquired in a 2006 management buyout led by ABS Capital Partners, currently offers its self-study language learning tools in 31 languages.

Before the IPO, ABS owned about 44% of the company.

The company, which has around 1,200 employees and reported 2008 net income of $13.9 million on revenue of $209 million, said that its plans include extending its offerings through new web-based services, as well as expanding them to handheld devices.

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