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Shutterstock Surges After IPO Priced Above Range at $17

October 10, 2012| 1 min. read

By Sarah Frier on October 11, 2012

Shutterstock Inc. (SSTK), an online marketplace for digital images, surged in its first trading day after raising $76.5 million in an initial public offering that sold above the proposed price range.The shares, trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol SSTK, advanced (SSTK) 27 percent to close at $21.66.

Shutterstock sold 4.5 million shares at $17 apiece, the New York-based company said today in a statement. The IPO exceeded the proposed range of $13 to $15, giving the company a market value of $558.3 million.

Shutterstock, which sells access to a cache of more than 20 million licensed photos, illustrations and videos, is the city’s first technology IPO since MediaMind Technologies Inc. went public in 2010, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Shutterstock is getting a boost from increased interest in photo databases since Carlyle Group LP (CG) agreed in August to buy photo archive Getty Images in a deal valued at $3.3 billion.

“It’s hard to imagine that it’s gotten this big,” Shutterstock Chief Executive Officer Jon Oringer said in an interview. “I’ve had lots of opportunities to do whatever I want to do at Shutterstock, and now we have more flexibility to grow.”

Oringer said he has rebuffed acquisition offers and wants to retain control of the company, which he founded in 2003 with 30,000 of his own photographs.

Shutterstock sells images to more than 550,000 customers in more than 150 countries for use on websites as well as for digital or printed marketing materials. Net income rose 15 percent to $21.9 million last year, while revenue increased 45 percent to $120.3 million.

‘Good Property’

“Shutterstock is a good property,” Francis Gaskins, president of IPOdesktop.com in Marina Del Rey, California, said in an interview. “They have a large user base, recurring cash flow and increasing revenue. It really depends on the quarterly earnings now.”

After the IPO, Oringer will own about 57 percent of outstanding common stock, while Insight Venture Partners will hold about a 21 percent stake, according to a regulatory filing.

Morgan Stanley (MS), Deutsche Bank AG (DBK), and Jefferies Group Inc. (JEF) were the lead underwriters.