Water infrastructure construction company Shimmick Corp. is no stranger to going against the flow when it comes to seeking a public listing.
In 2016, the firm, then based in Oakland and with annual revenue of about $460 million, aimed to complete a $75 million IPO in a year that saw just 111 companies listed on U.S. exchanges, raising $24 billion, according to data from Dealogic.
At the time, that marked the worst year for domestic IPOs since 2003, according to industry data.
Shimmick ultimately pulled the plug on its IPO plans, and in 2017 the firm was sold to Aecom for $175 million.
Aecom sold Shimmick and other related units to a private equity firm in 2021. Shimmick, now with its HQ in Irvine and with annual revenue topping $600 million, is plotting going public once again in a market that’s seen few IPOs this year.
Some $10.1 billion was raised in 63 IPOs in the U.S. during the first half of 2023, according to industry data.
See Peter J. Brennan’s front-page story for more on Shimmick, which can count the Hoover Dam among its most notable projects.
SEC filings indicate that in the past month the firm opted to change underwriters from B. Riley to Newport Beach’s Roth Capital Partners.
SEC filings indicate Shimmick Corp. is planning to raise $50 million or so in its IPO, a modest amount.
Another Irvine-based firm, tech distribution giant Ingram Micro, a year ago announced that it had submitted a confidential filing with the SEC for a proposed IPO, in what would likely be the largest public listing for an OC company since Rivian’s blockbuster IPO in late 2021, which brought in proceeds of $13.7 billion (Nasdaq: RIVN).
Industry reports at the time put an estimated valuation in the $8 billion range for Ingram Micro, assuming IPO proceeds of $2 billion or so for the company, which in 2021 was bought by LA private equity firm Platinum Equity for a reported $7.2 billion.
Ingram’s yet to move ahead on the public listing amid the choppy market for IPOs this year. CEO Paul Bay told trade publication CRN this month that the company hasn’t abandoned its plans, though.
“When that time’s appropriate, then we’ll go public,” Bay told CRN. “In the meantime, we’ve got a great sponsor in Platinum Equity. They’ll continue to support our goals, objectives and our investments, which we’ve continued.”
The special purpose acquisition company or SPAC route to the public markets also remains challenging.
Local companies including chipmaker Mobix Labs and virtual reality education firm Eon Reality say their proposed reverse merger deals remain on track, albeit delayed.
Others have abandoned their plans.
Indi EV, an electric vehicle upstart company that moved from LA into a new headquarters in Costa Mesa last December, in February announced plans to go public via a reverse merger with SPAC Malacca Straits Acquisition Company Ltd. (Nasdaq: MLAC). The company was optimistically valued at around $600 million at the time.
That deal was called off in June, and the SPAC opted to liquidate. This month, Indi EV filed for bankruptcy protection, listing assets of $2.8 million and liabilities of $26.4 million, according to court filings.
