(By Balaseshan) Blyth Inc. (NYSE:BTH) said its subsidiary ViSalus, a seller of nutritional supplement, withdrew its $175 million initial public offering due to uncertain market conditions. Following the news, shares of BTH plunged 22.81% in premarket.
ViSalus has achieved net sales growth in excess of 450% in the first half of 2012; however, management believes that current market conditions are not conducive to recognizing this level of achievement. As such, Blyth management supports fully this decision.
"We are extremely confident in the long-term growth prospects of ViSalus. Over the past year, Ryan Blair, ViSalus' CEO, has worked with ViSalus' other Founders to put in place a first class management team and the processes and programs necessary to bring ViSalus to the next level of achievement," said Robert Goergen, Chairman & CEO of Blyth.
On August 16, ViSalus has filed a registration statement on Form S-1 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for a potential initial public offering of its Class A common stock. The statement has been filed by FVA Ventures Inc., which will be renamed ViSalus in connection with the IPO.
ViSalus is a direct-to-consumer, personal health product company offering a suite of branded weight-management products, nutritional supplements and energy drinks to customers in the United States and Canada through a network marketing model, which is a form of direct selling.
BTH closed Tuesday's regular session at $32.57. The stock has been trading between $25.62 and $46.15 for the past 52 weeks.