Tenable inches towards IPO, finally

One of the best funded cybersecurity companies in the entire industry is reportedly on the precipice of finally going public.

One of the best funded cybersecurity companies in the entire industry is reportedly on the precipice of finally going public.

Columbia, Maryland-based Tenable Network Security has hired investment bank Morgan Stanley to help it file for an initial public offering (IPO), so that it can be traded on the New York Stock Exchange, according to Reuters. The move comes after rumors of a planned IPO for Tenable have circulated for at least two years, based on prior reporting by DC Inno.

Tenable’s product portfolio largely focuses on endpoint detection software which helps organizations detect and analyze internet traffic at a granular level. The company’s competitors include other publicly-traded cybersecurity brands, like Boston-based Rapid7 and California-based Qualys.

Over the last several years, publicly-traded cybersecurity companies have struggled to match trading estimates, having not performed financially on a reliable basis. But more recently, these same firms are recovering by posting respectable earnings and offerings. For example, although FireEye’s stock price plummeted from about $30 per share to less than $15 per share just two years ago, the price has slowly but consistently risen. Another Tenable rival, Zscaler Inc., also went public earlier this month. Its shares jumped 75 percent on just the first day of trading.

Founded in 2002, Tenable has raised more than $300 million from private investors, including multiple prominent venture capitals firms like Insight Venture Partners and Accel Partners.

In April 2016, former Tenable CEO Ron Gula worried that taking Tenable to the stock market too early could be a poor business decision, fearing the cybersecurity industry was in the middle of a market “bubble” where a decline in valuations was soon to come. Gula was right.

Two years ago, Gula stepped away from day-to-day duties at the company, instead becoming its chairman. In early 2017, Amit Yoran, the former president of cybersecurity firm RSA took over for Gula.

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