Portland tech company Puppet sets 2021 target for IPO
Updated: Nov. 11, 2020, 7:31 a.m. | Published: Nov. 11, 2020, 7:29 a.m.
Puppet is partnering with the Portland Incubator Experiment (PIE), which had sponsored successive generations of startups.Oregonian file photo
By Mike Rogoway | The Oregonian/OregonLive
Puppet, Portland's largest homegrown tech company, said Wednesday that it hopes to hold an initial public offering next year. It would be the first for an Oregon technology firm since 2004.
In conjunction with the announcement, Puppet announced two new board members: Topa Insurance Group CEO Michael Day, and Mark Hill, who is chief digital information officer for CSL Behring.
Puppet's software helps organizations manage data centers and other large computing networks. Founded 15 years ago, the company grew rapidly after moving to Portland in 2009 and began pursuing an IPO several years ago.
It shelved those plans in 2016 as growth cooled and its market began changing, with new technologies emerging to compete with Puppet's tools.
Puppet employs about 450, most of them in Portland. It doesn't disclose financial results and it's not clear what's driving Puppet's IPO talk now, but the company has been taking venture investment since 2009 and has raised at least $128 million altogether.
Some of those funds may be ready to close out their position or seeking a return on their capital. The Portland company revived IPO talk last summer, when it arranged a $40 million loan.
Setting a timetable for an IPO may also motivate potential acquirers to act ahead of that date. Longtime Puppet rival Chef sold in September for $220 million.
Oregon's tech industry has grown by 20%, and software employment has nearly doubled, in the 16 years since Cascade Microtech went public with the state's last technology IPO.
Most of that growth has come from out-of-state businesses opening Oregon outposts, however. No big new Oregon-based tech company emerged during that period.
And most of Oregon's large technology businesses sold during that stretch, a list that includes Mentor Graphics, FEI Co., Electro Scientific Industries, Tektronix and Cascade Microtech.
-- Mike Rogoway | mrogoway@oregonian.com | twitter: @rogoway | 503-294-7699