Solar Energy Firm Nextracker Seeks Up to $535 Million in US IPO

Michael Hytha, Bloomberg News

Photovoltaic panels at the Salsipuedes solar plant in Villa de Arista, San Luis Potosi state, Mexico, on Friday, Oct. 8, 2021. President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador's plan to change the constitution to give control of the electricity market to state utility CFE would destroy Mexico's clean energy advances, according to a joint statement from the country's wind and solar associations. Photographer: Mauricio Palos/Bloomberg , Bloomberg

(Bloomberg) -- Solar energy technology provider Nextracker Inc. is seeking to raise as much as $535 million in what could be one of the first major US initial public offerings of the year.

The company said in a filing Wednesday with the US Securities and Exchange Commission that it planned to sell more than 23 million shares for $20 to $23 each.

Nextracker’s backers include TPG, which bought a minority stake in it last year, according to the filing. Nextracker parent Flex Ltd. will continue to control the company after the IPO, according to the filing.

Based in Fremont, California, Nextracker supplies integrated solar tracker and software solutions used in utility-scale and ground-mounted distributed generation solar projects. Its products enable solar panels to follow the sun’s movement across the sky and optimize performance. The company had revenue of about $1.5 billion with net income of $51 million in its last fiscal year.

Nextracker is moving to go public months after the US passed a landmark climate law providing tax credits to solar installations, including the large fields of panels that use the company’s trackers.

If Nextracker goes ahead with its share sale as planned, it could be the largest US listing since October when self-driving technology company Mobileye Global Inc. raised $990 million including so-called greenshoe shares.

After a record $339 billion was raised in US IPOs in 2021, last year’s listings plunged to $24 billion amid concerns over market volatility, inflation and geopolitical tensions, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. January, with only 10 listings raising $533 million, was the slowest first month of the year for US listings since 2009, the data show.

Companies with pending listings include Johnson & Johnson’s consumer health business Kenvue Inc., which filed last month for an IPO, and Vietnam based electric-vehicle maker VinFast Auto Ltd., which submitted its filing in December.

Nextracker’s offering is being led by JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Bank of America Corp., with 13 other underwriters including Citigroup Inc. and Barclays Plc listed in its filing. Nextracker plans for its shares to trade on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol NXT.

--With assistance from Brian Eckhouse.