Special Situation: Avalara IPO

Article Excerpt

AVALARA INC. $42 (New York symbol AVLR; Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares o/s: 66.5 million; Market cap: $2.8 billion; No dividend paid; Takeover Target Rating: Medium; www.avalara.com) makes software that helps businesses calculate, collect and remit retail sales taxes. That includes taxes on goods, fuels and hotel rooms—across a wide variety of cities, states, and regional and national governments. AvaIara sells its software as a cloud-based subscription to 8.1 million clients. On June 15, 2018, the company completed an Initial Public Offering of 8.625 million shares at $24.00 each for net proceeds of $192.5 million. In the quarter ended June 30, 2018, Avalara’s revenue jumped 25.2%, to $63.7 million from $50.9 million a year earlier. Without unusual items, its losses per share improved to $0.19 from $0.20. The company’s technology has promise. However, it will probably lose money for the next two to three years. The stock also trades at a high 10 times its revenue per share. We don’t recommend Avalara. —James Bates, Associate Editor Editor…