AdExchanger asked industry leader and Mediaocean CEO Bill Wise his “take” on today’s Initial Public Offering (IPO) for real-time ad platform and services company, Rocket Fuel.
The IPO netted Rocket Fuel $116 million and valued the company at approximately $1.8 billion at market close (stock quote).
Bill Wise:
On Rocket Fuel doubling and worth nearly 2 billion… HOLY $$$$$$HIT!!!
The big questions for them are:
- Can they continue their revenue growth while maintaining gross margin levels? Criteo had “rocket” growth, only to slow down and now their margins are mid 30’s.
- Can they grow without adding labor and salespeople? They need to add true recurring revenue, more SaaS-like.
- Can they break through the billion dollar billings glass ceiling? This will require them to solve for attribution, global scalability, and policing bad traffic– all which has haunted ad networks for years.
- Can they leverage this amazing market cap multiple to consolidate the space… And, in return, diversify their business?
