Markets & Business
Ethos Technologies prices IPO, eyes January 29 debut
Ethos Technologies has priced its IPO, with an expected debut on January 29 that could value the profitable insurance technology company at up to $1.26 billion.
Ethos Technologies has officially priced its initial public offering (IPO), with an expected market debut on Thursday, January 29, making it one of the first tech IPOs of the year. The company has set a price range of $18 to $20 a share. If the pricing lands on the high end of this current range, the company could be valued at $1.26 billion. Through this public offering, Ethos is looking to raise $102.6 million for itself. Additionally, the IPO is expected to raise about $108 million for its selling shareholders, which refers to existing investors or employees selling their shares. Should investor interest be high, the company could wind up pricing higher, which would mean a bigger valuation and more money raised.
Unlike many technology startups that have pursued public listings in recent years, Ethos is profitable and has been for years, according to its IPO documents. For the nine-month period ending September 30, the insurance technology company reported the following financial results:
- Revenue of almost $278 million
- Net income of just under $46.6 million
The company, which offers software to sell life insurance, has built a capital structure backed by several venture capital firms, including Sequoia, Accel, Alphabet’s venture capital arm GV, SoftBank, General Catalyst, and Heroic Ventures. Sequoia and Accel are not selling shares in the IPO, the company disclosed. In 2018, the company disclosed to TechCrunch that its early investors also included Will Smith, Robert Downey Jr., Kevin Durant, and Jay-Z. Ethos raised one big round after another through 2021, hitting a $2.7 billion valuation that year after raising $400 million by then, with most of that funding raised in 2021. Since then, the company has completed only very small fundraises, according to PitchBook estimates.
Why it matters
Ethos represents one of the first tech IPOs of the year, signaling potential market appetite for established, profitable insurance technology companies despite its valuation cooling since 2021.