Grocery-delivery company Instacart Inc. is delaying its long-awaited initial public offering because of poor market conditions, according to news reports Thursday.
The New York Times first reported Thursday that the San Francisco-based company has halted its IPO plans, and is awaiting more favorable conditions. Later Thursday night, the Wall Street Journal confirmed the report, citing a memo from Instagram CEO Fidji Simo saying an IPO will be “highly unlikely” this year.
The IPO market has been severely curtailed this year following a record-setting 2021, as the stock market has slid amid high inflation and recession fears. As of September, the number of U.S. IPOs was down 79% year over year, with total proceeds down 95%, according to Renaissance data.
According to the Times, Instacart had intended to start the IPO process this week by releasing some financial information, but decided not to, for now, due to market volatility.
The Journal reported that the IPO had received positive feedback from potential investors, but executives came away with the message that the market will not support a tech IPO at this time.
“Our business has never been stronger,” Instacart said in a statement Thursday. “In Q3, our revenue grew more than 40% year-over-year, and our net income and adjusted EBITDA more than doubled from Q2. We remain focused on building for the long term, and we are excited about the opportunity ahead.”
Instacart confidentially filed for its IPO in May. The company has been one of the more anticipated potential IPOs for years. In July, Instacart cut its estimated valuation for the second time in four months, to $15 billion, nearly 40% less than its previous valuation of $24 billion.
Last month, the Wall Street Journal reported Instacart didn’t plan on raising much capital in its IPO, instead having most of its listing come from the sale of employees’ shares — a move that could greatly benefit current employees.
