Calix Files for an IPO

Why wait for 2012? The end of the world is starting right now: Calix Inc. (NYSE: CALX) has filed to go public.

We'll repeat that while you get your jaw off the floor: Calix has filed to go public.

Light Reading has been running stories about theoretical Calix IPOs since the dawn of time (or maybe 2004). There was the time the hot access equipment startup sought an executive "to prepare the company for Sarbannes/Oxley compliance." (See Calix Picking Public Beancounters.) There was the time when sources swore that IPO paperwork was all but complete. (See Calix IPO Talk Resurfaces.) There was the CFO hiring early last year, surely a sign that something was imminent. (It wasn't.) (See Calix IPO Still on Hold.)

And don't mention all those appearances on our Top Private Companies lists. (See Light Reading's Top Ten Private Companies.)

Over the years, CEO Carl Russo has repeatedly told Light Reading that he relishes the life of a privately held company. (See Full Transcript of LRTV’s Interview With Carl Russo, CEO, Calix .) But he usually added that an IPO, someday, wouldn't be out of the question.

Of course, the fun of an IPO filing is that you get to see how much money Calix has been making -- or not. Here are the numbers from its S-1 filing today.

Table 1: Calix's Financials

	2006	2007	2008
Revenues ($M)	203.6	193.8	250.5
Net income (loss) ($M)	(19.5)	(24.9)	(12.9)
Income (loss) per share	($4.17)	($4.64)	($2.85)
Source: Calix.

For the nine months ended Sept. 26, 2009, Calix is reporting revenues of $144.6 million and net losses of $28.3 million, or $4.69 per share.

Today's filing is a preliminary one, providing no specifics on the total number of shares to be offered. For purposes of calculating the registration fee, Calix wrote $100 million as a maximum price for the offering.

The underwriters are Goldman Sachs & Co. , Morgan Stanley , Jefferies & Co. Inc. , and UBS Investment Bank .

— Craig Matsumoto, West Coast Editor, Light Reading