ServiceNow, the provider of a cloud platform to manage information technology operations, has filed to go public.
ServiceNow’s works for several large enterprises to automate many of key IT operations, including workflow, notifications, reporting and software upgrades. It also offers a system where companies can build custom apps.
The company faces tough competitors like BMC (NYSE:BMC) and Hewlett-Packard (NYSE:HPQ), but they have mostly legacy software solutions, which tend to be expensive and require consultants for integration and maintenance.
In fact, ServiceNow seems to be having little trouble taking away customers. The company has over 600 customers that span industries like financial services, health care, technology and utilities. From fiscal years 2010 to 2011, revenues spiked 114% to $92.6 million.
SeviceNow is certainly gunning for a massive market opportunity — according to Gartner, the market is estimated to be around $13.6 billion this year and grow to $19.8 billion by 2016.
A key to ServiceNow is the company’s proven CEO, Frank Slootman, who took Data Domain public in 2007 and sold the company to EMC (NYSE:EMC) for $2.4 billion a couple years later.
The ServiceNow IPO is likely to see a strong reception, considering the previous warm welcome investors have given to cloud offerings like Jive (NASDAQ:JIVE), Millennial Media (NYSE:MM) and Brightcove (NASDAQ:BCOV).
The lead underwriters include Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS), Citigroup (NYSE:C) and Deutsche Bank (NYSE:DB). The company plans to list on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “NOW.”
Tom Taulli runs the InvestorPlace blog IPO Playbook, a site dedicated to the hottest news and rumors about initial public offerings. He also is the author of “The Complete M&A Handbook”, “All About Short Selling” and “All About Commodities.” Follow him on Twitter at @ttaulli or reach him via email. As of this writing, he did not own a position in any of the aforementioned securities.
A long-time follower of the IPO scene, back in 1999 Tom started one of the first sites in the space called WebIPO. It was a place where investors got research as well as access to deals for the dot-com boom. Tom also wrote the top-selling book, Investing in IPOs. In it, he covers all the aspects of analyzing an IPO, such as reading the prospectus, detecting the risk factors and understanding some of the arcane regulations. But don’t worry — if that process is too intimidating for you, thankfully Tom will do the legwork for you right here in the IPO Playbook blog.
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