Reuters – Restoration Hardware Prices IPO

(Reuters) – Furniture retailer Restoration Hardware (RH.N) priced its initial public offering at $24 a share on Thursday, at the top of its expected range, an underwriter said.

The company, backed by private equity firms Catterton Partners and Tower Three Partners LLC, raised $123.9 million by pricing 5.2 million shares as planned.

Restoration Hardware had intended to price shares at $22 to $24 per share.

Restoration Hardware offered 4.8 million shares with selling stockholders offering the rest.

Restoration Hardware, based in Corte Madera, California, sells furniture, bath linen, lighting fixtures and other items through its stores, website and catalogs.

The company competes with retailers including Williams Sonoma Inc (WSM.N) which operates the Pottery Barn and West Elm chains, Ethan Allen Interiors Inc (ETH.N) and Pier 1 Imports Inc (PIR.N). As of July 28, 2012, it operates 73 retail stores in the United States and Canada.

Restoration Hardware’s revenue grew 24 percent to $958.1 million in fiscal year 2012. It posted a profit of $20.6 million, compared with a loss of $7 million in the previous year.

The company was taken over by private equity firms alongside former CEO Gary Friedman in 2008 for $175 million as market conditions deteriorated.

Friedman resigned from Restoration Hardware in August after an internal investigation revealed a relationship with a 26-year old employee.

Restoration Hardware is one of the few initial public offerings this week after Hurricane Sandy forced U.S. stock exchanges to close on Monday and Tuesday and pushed back the IPO schedule.

BofA Merrill Lynch and Goldman Sachs are the lead underwriters on the offering.

Restoration Hardware will list its shares on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “RH.”

(Reporting By Olivia Oran; Editing by Bernard Orr)

Image Credit: Restoration Hardware