Austin-Based Yeti Puts IPO Plans On Ice Amid Volatile Market

AUSTIN, TX — Officials at Yeti, an Austin-based maker of high-end coolers and related accouterments, froze plans for an initial public offering on Monday, putting plans to raise money through shares of stock to investors on ice for now.

According to Market Watch, the company withdrew its plans for an IPO due to current "market conditions." The company made the decision to go public way back in 2016 on the New York Stock Exchange, and had even selected the ticker symbol "YETI" for trade on the big board. The company formally filed to issue the IPOin July, the Wall Street Journal reported.

But the market downswings of late have given company officials pause. Moreover, the company requested the Securities and Exchange Commission that all fees paid in connection with the IPO filing be "credited for future use" and all materials provided to regulators be returned to the company, according to the report.

The original IPO outline two years ago didn't specify the number of share that would be available for share or a timeline for the offering. Company officials had planned to use the proceeds to pay down debt and fund business operations, Yeti officials said at the time.

The storied company was founded locally in 2006 by brothers Roy Seiders and Ryan Seiders. According to SEC filings, company revenue has grown exponentially in recent years — peaking to $468.9 million in 2015.

The company's success has spawned many imitators, virtually all vanquished by Yeti's lawyers suing to prevent their emulators from selling on the market given perceived proprietary infractions given rivals' products similarities.

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Yeti isn't alone in being spooked by the market, which has been especially volatile of late given Donald Trump's threats of waging a trade war with Chinaover trade imbalances. After Trump made that threat, U.S. stocks fell sharply in a 724-point plunge — a 2.9 percent decline that was the worst since Feb. 8.

By the end of business day Monday when Yeti formally pulled out of an initial offering, the market had rebounded to recover most of its earlier losses. The Dow Jones industrial average rallied to close up 669 points after the big board's worst week since January 2016 amid fears of a trade war, ending up 255 points by Friday's close..

The delayed listing also is indicative of less-than-stellar performance for the WSJ labels a "sleepy IPO market" struggling to compete with private investment deluge and abundance of cheap debt enabling startups to avoid the public markets for a longer of time, the Journal noted. To wit: Some 95 companies raised $18.5 billion in new U.S. listings so far this year, according to Dealogic, compared to 157 companies raising $34 billion for the comparable period last year.

It's unclear when Yeti might decide to traverse the rocky, potentially treacherous IPO mountainous environs again, or when the frosty market might thaw in providing a more welcoming landscape.

Yeti unveiled its new flagship store at 220 S. Congress Ave. to much fanfare in February 2017.

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