Wednesday, July 22, 2015

VC-Backed Solar Co., Sunrun, Sets IPO Terms (RUN; SCTY; SUNE)

I wondered where the writer, Katie Fehrenbacher, had landed when Om Malik's empire folded.
From Fortune:

Solar company Sunrun sets terms to raise up to $309 million in IPO
The Silicon Valley born and backed solar installer is raising money to compete in a quickly consolidating market.

Solar company Sunrun, which installs solar panels on the rooftops of homes, has set the terms for its planned IPO which could raise up to $309 million. The eight-year-old, Silicon Valley-backed company, first filed its IPO plans last month.

The company, which will list under the symbol “RUN” on the Nasdaq, plans to sell 17.9 million shares at a price range of $13 to $15 per share. Underwriters have an option to purchase an additional 2.69 million shares. At the mid point of that range, and excluding the additional shares, Sunrun could raise closer to $251 million in the offering.

Sunrun is one of a handful of companies that finances and installs solar panels on home roofs. Competitors include SolarCity, Vivint Solar, Clean Power Finance, Sungevity and SunEdison. These companies provide customers with little or no money down solar panels, and customers pay a low monthly bill over a decade or more for the solar energy.

The solar industry is growing rapidly in the U.S. Over the next five years, another 3 million new home rooftop solar systems are expected to be installed in the U.S. More solar panels were installed on American homes in the first quarter of this year than ever before.

Part of the reason for the growing market is the “solar-as-a-service” business model innovation that companies like SolarCity and Sunrun developed. But these companies are now also facing a maturing and quickly consolidating market....MORE