When McAfee went public in October 2020, it was the second time. John McAfee founded the antivirus company in 1987 and first listed it in the early 1990s. Intel bought it in 2011 for $7.68 billion, then sold control to the buyout firm TPG in 2017. By 2020 the founder had long since left and become famous for other reasons. The company that kept his name mostly sold security software to families who bought new laptops.

From Intel and Back

McAfee Associates began in 1987, as the first computer viruses spread on floppy disks. It became one of the best-known names in antivirus software. Intel paid $48 a share for the company in 2011, betting that security belonged inside its chips. The plan never quite worked. In 2017 Intel sold a majority stake to TPG, and McAfee became independent again, with Intel keeping 49 percent. The new owners leaned on consumer subscriptions, often bundled with new PCs.

A Slip on Day One

McAfee priced its shares at $20 on October 21, 2020, and raised $740 million. The stock opened at $18.60 on Nasdaq the next day and closed at $18.70, below the offer price. In 2021 the company sold its business for corporations to Symphony Technology Group and kept only consumer products. Later that year an investor group led by Advent International agreed to buy the rest. The deal closed on March 1, 2022, and McAfee left the public market a second time.

Cover: Field Armor for Man, Unknown. Art Institute of Chicago, public domain. Chosen for a suit of field armor (protection).