Digital ad platform Outbrain valued at more than $1 billion in Nasdaq debut

(Reuters) - Shares of Outbrain Inc opened flat in their Nasdaq debut on Friday, giving the web recommendation platform a market capitalization of nearly $1.1 billion.

The company's shares opened at their initial public offering price of $20 per share. It sold 8 million shares in the IPO on Thursday to raise about $160 million.

Earlier this month, the company raised $200 million from Boston-based investment manager Baupost Group without disclosing the valuation at which the capital was raised.

New York-based Outbrain's technology connects advertisers to audiences to grow their business through recommendation feeds on websites. It partners with publishers and marketers in more than 55 countries.

Founded in 2006, Outbrain calls itself a "mobile first" company and got more than 66% of its revenue last year from mobile platforms, a regulatory filing showed.

Citigroup, Jefferies, Barclays and Evercore ISI were the lead underwriters for the offering.

(Reporting by Sohini Podder in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)