LinkedIn Sees IPO of Up to $274M

Business networking company LinkedIn will offer 7.84 million shares in its initial public offering, pricing the shares between $32 and $35 apiece, Reuters reported. At the high end, LinkedIn could raise up to $274 million in the IPO. The company is offering 4.8 million shares, and the rest by stockholders including Goldman Sachs, McGraw-Hill Companies Inc. and Bain Capital.

(Reuters) – LinkedIn Corp said it would offer 7.84 million shares in its initial public offering at between $32-$35 apiece.

At the high end of the price range, the company, which owns LinkedIn — the online social network for professionals and job seekers that has 100 million members worldwide — could raise up to $274 million through the offering.

The company is offering 4.8 million shares, and the rest by its certain stockholders.

Shares owned by co-founder and LinkedIn board chairman Reid Hoffman, who is among those stockholders selling their shares in the IPO, would represent about 21.7 percent of voting power after the offering.

Other key stakeholders offering their shares include Goldman Sachs , McGraw-Hill Companies Inc and Bain Capital Venture Integral Investors LLC.

LinkedIn is generating significant interest as one of the first social networking companies to start the process of being publicly traded, ahead of the much-anticipated Facebook IPO.

In January, LinkedIn had filed with U.S. regulators for an IPO to raise up to $175 million.

The company expects to receive net proceeds of about $146.6 million from the shares it is offering in the IPO, based on an assumed offering price of $33.50 a share.

It has applied to list its shares on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “LNKD.” (Reporting by Brenton Cordeiro in Bangalore; Editing by Maju Samuel)