MarketWatch.com Files for $34.5-Million IPO

MarketWatch.com Inc., which operates a financial information site on the World Wide Web--https://cbs.marketwatch.com--filed for an initial stock offering that could raise as much as $34.5 million. The San Francisco-based company was formed in 1997 by CBS Broadcasting Inc. and Data Broadcasting Corp. The Web site is aimed largely at individual investors, offering information such as stock quotes, market news, chat rooms and columns. With the Securities and Exchange Commission filing, MarketWatch.com is the latest Internet-related company to venture into a rough IPO market, hoping the allure of online commerce will draw investors. The filing did not say how many shares will be sold or how much the company hopes to get for them. The $34.5-million figure is an estimate solely to calculate the SEC registration fee. Underwriters will include BT Alex. Brown; Salomon Smith Barney; and Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette. The company has applied to trade on the Nasdaq Stock Market under the symbol MKTW.