Editor's note: An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated Newegg’s net profit. The Fool regrets the error.
After drying up entirely in 2008, the IPO market is heating up again. There are several hot new stocks coming your way in the energy sector, we saw a recent market entry by drug designer Cumberland Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:CPIX), and even a beauty product retailer hit the Street last week.
And now, one of my favorite private companies is taking the public plunge. Say hello to electronics retailer Newegg.com, set to collect $175 million or more from its first-ever public stock offering.
New egg, old egg -- what's the big deal?
If you've never heard of Newegg, I guess you're not that into online shopping or home electronics. The Californian e-tailer handled $2.1 billion of retail revenue in 2008 and has been profitable every year since 2001. It's my default destination when my home office needs some fresh computing power or the living room screams for new electronics. Has been for years. Probably will be for the foreseeable future.
That's because Newegg is doing business right. Newegg's shopping site is beautifully organized and well designed. The whole shopping experience, from product research to placing the order to even the rare return, is smooth sailing. And you always know you're getting a great deal here.
But wait -- there's more!
Yeah I know -- I'm starting to sound like an infomercial. No, Newegg isn't paying me. The store is just that darn good. I'm not surprised to see that Newegg makes money in good times and bad, and that it keeps customers coming back for repeat business. Like the company slogan says: "Once you know, you Newegg."
Simply put, Newegg is the In-N-Out Burger of electronics retail, and Tim Beyers will tell you how he feels about that burger joint. It's all about building a long-lasting business relationship with the end customer, and then expanding that connection into new business opportunities.
DVD players today, canned peaches tomorrow
If Newegg uses some of the IPO-based cash infusion to start up whole new product lines, I wouldn't be surprised. The company started out selling Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) chips, NVIDIA (NASDAQ:NVDA) graphics cards, and other computer parts to a small but adoring audience of system builders and hobbyists. From there, Newegg expanded into consumer electronics like DVD players and big-screen TV sets, courtesy of Panasonic (NYSE:PC), Sony (NYSE:SNE), and others.
Remember how Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN) started out as a small online bookstore? Now, Amazon also sells toys, wheelbarrows, groceries, and motorcycle parts -- while taking an early lead in cloud-computing sales. There's no reason why Newegg couldn't follow the same path, just from a different starting point. And Newegg already eyes fresh markets like China and Canada. Like I said, there's plenty of growth to be had here.
What's it worth, then?
Newegg made a net profit of $21.5 million last year. If it were valued as a traditional electronics retailer at Best Buy’s (NYSE:BBY) P/E ratio of 17 times trailing earnings, the market cap would land at $365 million. But Newegg is much smaller and has more growth ahead of it, so Best Buy’s valuation metrics clearly set the bar too low here.
Amazon's mature e-business inspires investors to buy stock for 60 times earnings, and if Newegg gets that kind of market treatment, the cap would stop north of $1.29 billion. Of course, the $175 million offering target may change before Newegg’s shares actually hit the market -- and we don’t know how many shares the company will sell or keep in-house -- but the $1.29 billion rough estimate seems more fair to me.
And from there, I still think the only way is up for years to come. I can smell a freshly minted Rule Breaker comin' up around the bend. Newegg is bending the rules of e-business and making a pretty penny along the way. I'm thrilled to have the opportunity to invest in one of the best companies I know. What's next -- Five Guys and IKEA?
(Dream on, Anders ...)
