MARIMBA has the makings of a giant internet company with its monopoly.....
Marimba IPO soars
Software firm run by former Sun
Microsystems execs jumps 223%
April 30, 1999: 1:28 p.m. ET
NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Shares of Marimba Inc., the
software firm founded by former Sun Microsystems
Inc. executives, more than tripled in their first day of
trading Friday.
Marimba (MRBA), which makes software that lets
companies install and maintain software applications
across the Internet, saw its shares jump 223 percent
from an offering price of 20 to 64-9/16 in midday
trading.
Although the Mountain View, Calif.-based company
is Internet related, its management team represents the
chief attraction for investors, according to Jennifer
McBrien, an analyst at Renaissance Capital Corp.
Marimba was founded in 1996 by four former
members of Sun Microsystems 's (SUNW) original Java
programming language development team, headed by
Chief Executive Officer Kim Polese.
Customers for Marimba's flagship product, Castanet,
include Nortel Networks (NT), Home Depot (HD) and
Intuit Inc. (INTU).
The company also benefits from high-powered
financial backers, including venture-capital giant Kleiner
Perkins Caufield & Byers, which owns 15 percent of
Marimba.
Marimba lost $5.7 million on $17.1 million in revenue
in 1998. But McBrien noted the company is expected to
start showing a profit in 2000.
"They just need to cut some operating costs and
increase their revenues," McBrien said.
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