May 9 (Reuters) - Autonomy Corp Plc , a British computing technology company, said on Tuesday it would list 2.2 million shares on America's Nasdaq exchange at a price of $124 per share. The company's shares are currently traded on the Brussels-based Easdaq exchange. Deutsche Bank Alex Brown, Bank of America Securities, Wit Soundview and Dresdner Kleinwort Benson are the underwriters for the new share issue.
Autonomy offered 880,000 shares for the Nasdaq initial public offering, and 1,320,000 were offered on behalf of selling shareholders. The shares will be in the form of American depository shares and will trade under the symbol AUTN on Nasdaq.
Autonomy and one of the selling shareholders have also granted the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to 330,000 additional shares.
The company, based in Cambridge, southeast England, has seen its share price rise by 160.8 percent so far this year, outperforming the Easdaq market by 121.2 percent.
Autonomy's success is built on software that uses pattern-matching algorithms drawing on information technology, probability theory and arcane maths to help computers "understand" human prose.
The company reported a 1999 pre-tax loss of 680,000 pounds ($1.04 million) on March 9, down from a loss of 1.74 million pounds in 1998.
Its shares closed at $127 on the Easdaq exchange on May 8. ((London newsroom, +44 20 7542 4020, fax +44 20 7583 3769, uk.equities.news@reuters.com)) ($1=.6536 Pound) |
