(Bloomberg) -- EQT AB is planning an initial public offering of German enterprise software developer SUSE, according to people familiar with the matter.

The private equity firm is speaking to potential advisers about listing SUSE next year, the people said, asking not to be identified because the information is private. It could seek a valuation of about 5 billion euros ($5.9 billion) for the open-source software firm, according to the people.

An IPO would be a quick turnaround for EQT, which only completed its $2.5 billion acquisition of SUSE from Micro Focus International Plc in March last year.

No final decisions have been made, and plans for the share sale could change, the people said. A representative for EQT declined to comment.

A slew of technology companies are planning stock market listings next year amid buoyant valuations and strong investor appetite for the sector. Auto1 Group GmbH, a German online used car platform backed by SoftBank Group Corp., and French cloud-computing provider OVH Groupe SAS are among those lining up IPOs, Bloomberg News has reported.

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