(Reuters) – Rocket Companies Inc RKT.N, the parent of U.S. mortgage lender Quicken Loans, priced its initial public offering (IPO) on Wednesday at $18 per share, below a target range, and sold fewer shares than planned, a person familiar with the matter said.
Rocket sold 100 million shares to raise $1.8 billion in the IPO, which valued the company at around $36 billion. The company had aimed to sell 150 million shares at a target price range of $20-$22 per share.
A representative for Rocket did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The IPO pricing and deal size suggests Rocket struggled to convince investors its mortgage platform business justified a valuation conferred to a technology company rather than a financial services firm.
At $18, it is now the third-largest U.S. IPO of 2020, excluding blank-check companies. Within its original $20-$22 range, Rocket would have been the largest IPO of a U.S. company of the year so far.
The Detroit-based company, founded by billionaire Dan Gilbert in 1985, said earlier this month it expects a profit of more than $3 billion in the second quarter, compared with a loss in the same period of last year.
Higher borrowings by U.S. consumers in a historically low-interest environment has led to a surge in the company’s income.
Rocket shares are due to start trading on the New York Stock Exchange on Thursday under the symbol “RKT”.
Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Credit Suisse and JPMorgan are among underwriters for the IPO.
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