news.com
By Reuters
Special to CNET News.com
June 8, 1999, 10:15 a.m. PT
NEW YORK--Online health care network Drkoop.com, founded by former U.S. Surgeon General C. Everett Koop, priced an initial public offering of 9.38 million shares at $9 apiece today.
Some analysts believe the stock will do well in its stock market debut, despite an interest-rate-cautious market.
"We had a five-points-and-up premium for the deal. We scaled it back a bit to be more conservative and consider recent market trends," said David Menlow of IPO Financial Network.
He added, "The CEO, [C. Everett Koop], means instant credibility."
The shares, expected to open for trade today, priced at the top of the expected range of $7 to $9, with the help of lead underwriter Bear Stearns.
"There is a void in [the online IPO health care information] sector since Healtheon took over WebMD before it could go public," Menlow said.
Popular medical online network Healtheon merged with WebMD on May 20 in a deal Wall Street anticipated would be worth about $5.5 billion.
Drkoop.com, which offers eight interactive communities dispensing information on topics such as addiction and children's health, has several business pacts, including a recent agreement with Yahoo. |
