Shopping.com Jumps In IPO Trading

Comparison shopping engine Shopping.com has begun trading in the public markets, its stock climbing more than 53 percent in initial trading to reach a height of $27.60 by press time, after debuting at $18.

The company raised $123.7 million in the offering, having priced it Monday at the top of its range. Shopping.com’s stock now trades on Nasdaq under the ticker symbol “SHOP.”

Shopping.com, which was formed though the merger of DealTime and Epinions, has been busy this week. Monday, the company announced a distribution deal with Upromise, an affiliate marketing player that helps consumers save for their kids’ college educations. The deal lets Upromise members compare products, prices and features at partner merchants through a Shopping.com interface.

The comparison shopping space has heated up in recent months, especially internationally, with Yahoo buying European player Kelkoo and ValueClick purchasing PriceRunner.

The offering includes 6.9 million ordinary shares, made up of 5.1 million shares offered by Shopping.com and 1.8 million shares offered by selling shareholders. The underwriters have an overallotment option to purchase up to 1.0 million additional ordinary shares from Shopping.com at the IPO price.

The lead managers of the offering are Goldman, Sachs & Co, and Credit Suisse First Boston. Piper Jaffray and Deutsche Bank Securities are acting as co-managers.