ss marketing concept

Marketing automation business Marketo made its debut on the Nasdaq stock exchange today, and early trading looks strong, with shares up 55 percent over initial pricing.

Last night, the company priced 6.1 million shares at $13 — the high end of its $11-to-$13 range — and ended up raising $79 million. As of this writing, the stock is trading at over $20 a share.

Marketo and competing marketing automation firms like Eloqua, Pardot, and Silverpop offer software and services focused on improving and managing sales lead generation. The company purchased social campaign service Crowd Factory a year ago to help with its mission and to reach more consumers.

AI Weekly

The must-read newsletter for AI and Big Data industry written by Khari Johnson, Kyle Wiggers, and Seth Colaner.

Included with VentureBeat Insider and VentureBeat VIP memberships.

Back in early April, Marketo filed for a $75 million IPO. Prior to the IPO, San Mateo, Calif.-based Marketo raised $108 million in VC funding from big players including Battery Ventures, Institutional Venture Partners, InterWest Partners, Mayfield Fund, and Storm Ventures.

Big data business Tableau Software also had its IPO today and shares popped 60 percent in early trading. Today is clearly a good day for enterprise tech IPOs.

Marketing concept via Shutterstock

VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Learn More