The valuation of LinkedIn continues to soar ahead of its IPO, with the company upping the price of its offering by 30 percent to $42 to $45 per share.
The increased price range will net the company $352 million and value the business-oriented social network at more than $4 billion following the IPO. LinkedIn, which is slated to begin trading on the New York Stock Exchange on Thursday, initially planned to raise about half that -- $175 million -- when it filed to go public in January.
The first in what’s expected to be a number of IPOs this year from big players in the social media space, LinkedIn’s quickly escalating valuation underscores a trend we’ve been seeing in the private markets for some time.
Facebook was valued at $50 billion in January and is believed by some investors close to the company to be headed for a $100 billion or more market cap when it goes public in 2012. Meanwhile, Skype forewent an IPO in favor of Microsoft’s $8.5 billion acquisition offer –- more than double what many were anticipating the company to be valued at when it went public.