(Bloomberg) — Technology consulting firm Thoughtworks Holding Inc. climbed as much as 32% in its trading debut after pricing its initial public offering above a marketed range to raise $773 million.
Shares of the Chicago-based company rose to $27.70 at 2:48 p.m. in New York trading Wednesday, giving the company a market value of about $8.4 billion. The company sold almost 37 million shares for $21 Tuesday after marketing them for $18 to $20.
Thoughtworks, which is changing its name from Turing Holding Corp. as part of the IPO, is kicking off a seasonal surge in U.S. listings following the U.S. Labor Day weekend. At least five other companies filed on Tuesday to begin marketing their shares for listings of more than $100 million. They include Sovos Brands Inc., the owner of Rao’s Homemade pasta sauces, as well as online jeweler Brilliant Earth Group Inc.
Companies making their trading debuts Wednesday included three others that exceeded there goals for the share sales:
- On Holding AG, the maker of On running and performance shoes, rose as much as 58% in its debut after raising $746 million.
- Coffee chain Dutch Bros Inc. rose as much as 74% after its $484 million offering
- Definitive Healthcare Corp. climbed as much as 60% after its $420 million IPO.
Thoughtworks, with more than 9,000 employees based in 17 countries, provides a combination of engineering and consulting services.
Digital Transformation
Chief Executive Officer Guo Xiao said he sees a tremendous amount of growth from the ongoing digital transformation of businesses.
“We don’t want to just follow digital trends, we want to help establish them,” he said in an interview.
“There will be a constant state of change in the next 10 to 20 years,” he said. “Every business will become a modern digital business. It will be embedded. It will be part of the DNA.”
Thoughtworks, backed by Apax Partners, had net income of $37 million on revenue of $498 million during the first six months of 2021, according to its filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. That compared with net income of $38 million on revenue of $401 million during the same period last year.
Apax Control
Funds affiliated with Apax will continue to control the company after the IPO, according to the filing. Siemens AG and affiliates of Singapore’s GIC Pte also own stakes in the company.
The offering was led by Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. Thoughtworks shares are trading on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol TWKS.
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