UPDATE 1-Emdeon increases IPO size, prices at top of range
* Emdeon IPO prices for $15.50, top of estimate range
* Emdeon increased number of shares sold by 10 percent
NEW YORK, Aug 11 (Reuters) - Emdeon Inc (EM.N) priced shares for $15.50 in its initial public offering on Tuesday, at the top of the estimate range, and increased the number of shares sold by 10 percent, one of the deal's underwriters said.
Emdeon sold 23.7 million shares and raised about $365.7 million.
Nashville-based Emdeon, a provider of payments and billing systems to U.S. health care providers, had estimated the shares would price at $13.50 to $15.50 per share.
About half the shares sold were held by current shareholders, which include two private equity firms -- General Atlantic Partners and Hellman & Friedman, which bought the firm in 2006.
Emdeon will use its share of the IPO's proceeds -- about $157 million -- to pay its early investors, as well as repay debt and make possible future acquisitions, according to a regulatory filing.
The IPO's underwriters were led by Morgan Stanley (MS.N), Goldman Sachs & Co, (GS.N) UBS Investment Bank (UBSN.VX) and Barclays Capital (BARC.L), who have the option to purchase up to an additional 5.06 million shares to cover over allotments.
Emdeon shares are set to begin trading on the New York Stock Exchange on Wednesday under the symbol "EM". (Reporting by Phil Wahba; Editing by Gary Hill)
