Reddit is reportedly being advised to target a valuation of at least $5 billion as it prepares to potentially go public this year – a fraction of what the social media site was said to be worth just three years ago.
The San Francisco-based firm is “targeting a valuation in the mid-single-digit billions” and could list its shares by as early as March, Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
Even the proposed $5 billion valuation may be a stretch. The outlet noted that private trades of Reddit’s unlisted shares have valued the company at $4.8 billion or lower. Bids on Rainmaker Securities’ database have signaled a valuation between $4.5 billion and $4.6 billion.
Reddit has yet to announce a final decision on whether to go public and key details of a potential move, such as exact timing and valuation, could change. It would be the first major social media platform to go public since Pinterest’s IPO in 2019.
Reddit representatives did not immediately return a request for comment.
Reddit had raised money at a whopping $10 billion valuation during its most recent funding round in 2022 after drawing renewed interest as the epicenter of the “WallStreetBets” meme stock craze.
At the time, Bloomberg noted that Reddit could have been valued at as much as $15 billion if it had moved forward with an IPO.
Reddit has more than 70 million daily active unique visitors and more than 100,000 active communities, according to stats on its website.
The tech IPO market boomed as easy money flowed in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021. However, public offerings have slowed to a trickle in the last two years as surging interest rates and tightened credit conditions caused a major slowdown in the sector.
Just 54 US companies went public last year – the second-lowest total since 2008, according to data cited by the Wall Street Journal last week. In 2022, just 38 US firms went public.
Firms that pushed forward with public offerings despite the tough economic conditions have struggled.
Last year, shares of online grocery delivery Instacart swelled to $42 after its debut, only to plunge in the following weeks. The stock is currently trading just above $25.