Cloud technology company Rackspace went public for the second time on Tuesday after four years in the private market following a leveraged buyout from Apollo Global Management Inc.
During that time, the company refined its focus and went from a competitor to a tight-knit partner with large-scale cloud service providers.
"One thing that's changed pretty significantly is that prior to the take-private in 2016, Rackspace Technology was competing with AWS, Google, and Microsoft," CEO Kevin Jones told Cheddar. "Today we don't compete."
The company is now focused on designing and operating software that helps clients manage
multiple cloud computing services.
Jones said coronavirus has given the company a boost as clients seek to cut costs or pivot to new business models by embracing cloud technology.
"We had a lot of momentum before, but this has really just put us into hyper-growth mode," he said.
Yet the new model didn't spare Rackspace from a tough public debut. Shares fell 20 percent at the opening bell on Wednesday, and the offering was already priced at the bottom end of its range.
Jones, however, maintains the company is still in a stronger position than ever.
"We've seen tremendous growth in the business," Jones said. "We've achieved four record-breaking sales quarters in a row. The company has 95 percent recurring revenue, we're extremely profitable, great cash flow. With this profile, we decided to come back into the public markets."
This isn't the first time Rackspace has gone public during an economic crisis. Its first IPO was in 2008 in the heat of the Great Recession.
The Rev. Al Sharpton is set to lead a protest march on Wall Street to urge corporate America to resist the Trump administration’s campaign to roll back diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. The New York civil rights leader will join clergy, labor and community leaders Thursday in a demonstration through Manhattan’s Financial District that’s timed with the anniversary of the Civil Rights-era March on Washington in 1963. Sharpton called DEI the “civil rights fight of our generation." He and other Black leaders have called for boycotting American retailers that scaled backed policies and programs aimed at bolstering diversity and reducing discrimination in their ranks.
President Donald Trump's administration last month awarded a $1.2 billion contract to build and operate what's expected to become the nation’s largest immigration detention complex to a tiny Virginia firm with no experience running correction facilities.
Chipmaker Nvidia is poised to release a quarterly report that could provide a better sense of whether the stock market has been riding an overhyped artificial intelligence bubble or is being propelled by a technological boom that’s still gathering momentum.
Cracker Barrel said late Tuesday it’s returning to its old logo after critics — including President Donald Trump — protested the company’s plan to modernize.
Low-value imports are losing their duty-free status in the U.S. this week as part of President Donald Trump's agenda for making the nation less dependent on foreign goods. A widely used customs exemption for international shipments worth $800 or less is set to end starting on Friday. Trump already ended the “de minimis” rule for inexpensive items sent from China and Hong Kong, but having to pay import taxes on small parcels from everywhere else likely will be a big change for some small businesses and online shoppers. Purchases that previously entered the U.S. without needing to clear customs will be subject to the origin country’s tariff rate, which can range from 10% to 50%.
Southwest Airlines will soon require plus-size travelers to pay for an extra seat in advance if they can't fit within the armrests of one seat. This change is part of several updates the airline is making. The new rule starts on Jan. 27, the same day Southwest begins assigning seats. Currently, plus-size passengers can pay for an extra seat in advance and later get a refund, or request a free extra seat at the airport. Under the new policy, refunds are still possible but not guaranteed. Southwest said in a statement it is updating policies to prepare for assigned seating next year.
Cracker Barrel is sticking with its new logo. For now. But the chain is also apologizing to fans who were angered when the change was announced last week.
Elon Musk on Monday targeted Apple and OpenAI in an antitrust lawsuit alleging that the iPhone maker and the ChatGPT maker are teaming up to thwart competition in artificial intelligence.
