Angie’s List Joins IPO Fray

Add Angie’s List (Nasdaq: ANGI) to the growing number of IPOs in November.

On the same day that auto parts maker Delphi Automotive (NYSE: DLPH) went public, Angie’s List, a consumer-review website with more than 1 million subscribers, introduced an initial public offering of its own today. The Indianapolis-based company raised $114 million in its IPO after being priced at the high end of its expected range at $13 a share.

Since hitting the market this morning, shares of Angie’s List surged more than 40 percent at one point, trading as high as $18.75 per share. The stock had tapered off a bit at mid-day, but was still up more than 21 percent from its $13 per share IPO price.

Angie’s List offers users detailed reviews of plumbers, roofers, house cleaners, electricians, dentists and other service providers. The company charges its members $3 to $6 per month to access and post reviews about local businesses and services to its website.

The $13 IPO price valued Angie’s List at $730 million, about 9.2 times sales in the trailing 12 months, through September. Revenue at the company had shot up 46 percent year-over-year during the first nine months of 2011.

According to its SEC filing, Angie’s List plans to use its IPO proceeds to fund advertising and increase memberships.

Angie’s List is just the latest example of what has been an IPO renaissance in November. After a recent IPO drought of more than two months, 12 companies have gone public so far this month. Several other companies are set to price their IPOs before Thanksgiving.

The most notable IPO this month was Groupon (NYSE: GRPN), the online daily deals king. Groupon raised $700 million in its initial offering on November 4 – the biggest IPO for a technology stock since Google (Nasdaq: GOOG) debuted in 2004.

Many analysts have since credited Groupon with opening up the proverbial IPO floodgates, showing other companies it was now safe to go public. As a fellow tech stock with a strong Internet presence, Angie’s List may have been particularly encouraged by Groupon’s early success.

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