Red Hat Planning Initial Stock Offering

Red Hat Software Inc., which sells a Linux operating system that competes with Microsoft Corp.’s Windows software, filed to raise as much as $96.6 million through an initial stock sale. The Durham, N.C.-based company will use proceeds from the stock sale for general corporate purposes, including working capital and geographic expansion, according to its filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. “This bears an acknowledgment that Red Hat has created an apparent market for Linux as a supported, pay-for product and is about to cash in on that,” said Harry Fenik, an analyst at market researcher Zona Research Inc. Underwriters for the stock sale will include Goldman, Sachs & Co., Thomas Weisel Partners and ETrade Securities Inc. Red Hat has applied to trade on the Nasdaq Stock Market under the symbol RHAT.