Levi Strauss planning a public markets comeback

Levi Strauss, inventor of the iconic blue jeans, filed for an initial public offering on Wednesday. The company plans to list its shares on the NYSE under the ticker symbol LEVI. In its filing with the SEC, the company said it was looking to raise $100 million in its IPO, but this number could change as it goes forward.

The IPO will mark the company’s return to public markets after it was taken private over 30 years ago in 1985. Levi will have both Class A and Class B common stock and the majority voting power will be held by the founding family.

For the full year of 2018, Levi reported a 14% increase in revenue to $5.5 billion along with net income of $285 million. The company saw revenue growth across all its regions with double-digit growth in the Americas and Europe. The Americas segment contributed 55% of net revenues during the year. As of November 25, 2018, Levi’s products were sold in over 50,000 retail locations.

Levi believes there is significant opportunity to broaden its presence in emerging markets such as India, China and Brazil, to drive long-term growth. The company is focused on growing its DTC channel and also plans to pursue acquisitions that provide good returns.

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