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Vignette Sets the Stage for More Internet-Stock Frenzy

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<i> Bloomberg News</i>

Get ready for the next Internet-related stock rocket:

Vignette Corp., a maker of software designed to help online retailers increase sales, raised $76 million in an initial stock sale Thursday.

The Austin, Texas-based company and existing shareholders sold 4 million shares at $19 each. That was $2 above the top of the $15-to-$17 range set by lead underwriter Morgan Stanley, Dean Witter & Co.

Morgan Stanley raised the number of shares to be sold by 500,000, and the expected price range from $12 to $14 each, in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday.

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The larger-than-expected sale reflects strong demand by institutional investors for a stake in the company.

“The main focus of retailers has moved away from simply attracting eyeballs to converting them to sales,” said Steven Tuen, analyst at IPO Value Monitor. “Vignette is one of the leaders in that space.”

The stock will begin trading today on Nasdaq under the ticker symbol VIGN.

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