SELF-DRIVING TRUCK OUTFIT TUSIMPLE TARGETS $7.85B VALUATION IN IPO FILING
Self-driving truck startup TuSimple has set the price range for its proposed initial public stock offering at $35 to $39 per share, which at the midpoint would value the upstart San Diego-based firm at $7.85 billion.
TuSimple revealed its proposed price range on Wednesday in an update to its prospectus — initially filed on March 23 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
TuSimple posted just $1.8 million in revenue and rung up a $178 million loss last year. Still, it has momentum in the self-driving truck race — thanks to the significant capital that it has raised and partnerships with heavyweights in the freight hauling sector, including UPS, Navistar, Volkswagen affiliate Traton SE, U.S. Xpress, Schneider and others.
Since it was founded in 2015, TuSimple
has raised more than $800 million from investors, according to the prospectus. If the company goes public at $37 per share, it would rank among San Diego’s Top 10 largest public traded companies based on market value.
Self-driving long-haul trucks have the potential to reduce accidents, lower emissions and boost efficiency in moving goods, according to the company. With autonomous vehicles, trucks can operate throughout the day, as opposed to human-operated vehicles where drivers must adhere to federal limits on how long they can be behind the wheel.
TuSimple expects to raise $986 million from the IPO and a parallel private placement, after fees and underwriter discounts. One of its key investors — Sun Dreams Inc., — also is selling 6.76 million shares in the IPO.
Sun Dream is an affiliate of Sina Corp., a Chinese online media firm. It currently owns 20 percent stake in TuSimple, and that has drawn scrutiny from the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States.
CFIUS notified TuSimple in early March of its intent to review Sina Corp.’s involvement to determine if it raises national security concerns
TuSimple will use the IPO proceeds to fund operations. It also could pursue acquisitions, through no deals are in the pipeline, according to the prospectus.
This year, the company expects to demonstrate autonomous trucks operating on public roads without a safety driver on board.
It aims to produce selfdriving semis for commercial use in the U.S. by 2024 in partnership with Navistar.
In the past four months, Navistar has received 5,700 reservations for these purpose-built autonomous trucks using TuSimple technology — though reservations can be canceled at any time.
TuSimple has more than 800 employees and operations in San Diego, Arizona and China. After it becomes public, the company will have 212 million Class A common shares outstanding. It also will have 24 million Class B shares that give additional voting power to co-founders Mo Chen and Xiaodi Hou.
Morgan Stanley, Citigroup and J.P. Morgan are the investment bankers on the deal. TuSimple’s proposed ticker symbol is TSP, and its shares would trade on the Nasdaq Exchange.