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Sophos looks to raise £65m with IPO

Could this be the biggest UK floatation yet?

Security software outfit Sophos is to imminently float on the London Stock Exchange, a move it estimates will raise $100m (£65m), the company announced today.

The Oxford-based biz is thought to be targeting a valuation of £1bn, according to The Sunday Times (subscription required).

Richard Holway, analyst at TechMarketView predicted the move will be "the biggest tech IPO in the UK of all time".

Sophos has said it wants to flog more IT security products to mid-sized firms, typically between 100 and 5,000 employees.

The company operates a 'channel first' system, with its products sold via 15,000 channel partners.

Kris Hagerman, Sophos CE, said in a statement: "This is a very exciting time for Sophos and UK technology. We are proud of all that Sophos has accomplished over its 30-year history, but we are even more excited about the road ahead as we embark on the next stage of our growth as a public company."

For the year-ended 31 March 2015, Sophos said billings rose by 28 per cent to $476.0 (£309m).

Turnover rose 10 per cent to £128m for 2014, up from £114m in 2013 — according to its Companies House filing. Staff numbers in 2014 were 45.

Operating profit fell from £13m to £10m, mainly due to the acquisition of Acquired Cyberoam Technologies in February 2014.

In October last year the company also acquired Mojave Networks. ®

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