HealthPort cancels IPO

Health care information and services provider HealthPort Inc. shelved plans to go public last week, citing market conditions.

The shares were to have traded on Nasdaq on Thursday under the ticker symbol “HPRT.”

“They’re losing money and they have a lot of competition for their product,” said advisory firm IPO Boutique Senior Managing Partner Scott Sweet.

Alpharetta, Ga.-based HealthPort, which allows hospitals and physician clinics to request patient records from authorized parties such as insurance companies and government agencies, said in a regulatory filing it is the largest provider of those services and has a 20% market share.

It would have had an initial market cap of about $360 million, were it to price at the high end of its IPO range of $14 to $16 per share. HealthPort is owned by ABRY Partners.

The Boston-based private equity firm specializes in media and information technology companies. The firm had been an owner of the company since 2007, according to Thomson Reuters (publisher of PE Week).

Deutsche Bank Securities and William Blair & Co. were serving as co-lead underwriters. —Reuters