From DailyTech: After a watershed year in 2014, eight year old startup Fitbit filed papers with U.S. regulators Friday indicating that it will launch an IPO. The company did not announce a share quantity or target price for the stock offering, but analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S indicated an expectation that the IPO would draw over $100M USD on account of the company's strong performance. The company will trade under the symbol "FIT" on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).
Ironically, one key piece of the IPO puzzle came courtesy of a competition -- Apple, Inc.'s (AAPL) smartwatch, the Apple Watch. In spite of its flaws, the Apple Watch is expected to generate modest sales and drive volume into the nascent wearable space. As one of the wearable market's most well-liked and experienced brands, Fitibit is set ot capitalize on that surging interest.
Launched in 2007, the San Francisco, Calif.-based startup's laser focus helped it succeed at a time when other early players in the wearables market were imploding. Focused on fitness from day one, Fitbit's cloud-enabled tracking software drew rave reviews after it launched its clip-on tracker, the Fitbit Tracker, in 2008. May 2013 brought a pivotal shift when Fitbit took note of the growing "smartwatch" buzz, launching the Fitbit Flex, a band style wearable.
Last year (2014) proved a watershed year for the surging company and its two-year old smartband product line. Thanks to a mix of clever strategy and luck, it found itself at the right place at the right time in the wearables space. The NPD Group estimated that it dominated the fitness tracking segment of the wearables market, controlling 68 percent of sales last year. As of March 31, Fitbit sold over 20.8 million units, with half of that sales (roughly) being over the course of last year. Revenue and profit also hit record high last year, at $745.4M and $131.8M, respectively.
View: Article @ Source Site
