Wearable camera company GoPro to go public

San Mateo, Calif.-based action camera company GoPro registered to go public on Friday.

The company is the latest to file for a "secret" initial public offering. New rules, under the 2012 JOBS Act, allow companies to keep much of their operational information out of the public eye until shortly before the shares begin to trade. The act allows for companies with annual revenues of less than $1 billion to file with the SEC confidentially.

The date for GoPro's IPO hasn't yet been set, but it is expected to be at the end of the second quarter of 2014. JPMorgan is the lead banker on the offering, with Citigroup and Bank of America as possible participants, a source told CNBC.

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GoPro's CEO and founder, Nick Woodman, started the company with $64,000 of his own capital and then got his father to put in $100,000. GoPro products are now sold through consumer electronics retailers in more than 50 countries.

Woodman has said in interviews with other media outlets that GoPro has been "profitable since day one."

A GoPro Hero 3+ cameraDavid Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty Images

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Just ahead of the filing, the company appointed Jack Lazar its new chief financial officer on Feb. 4.

Back in December 2012, Foxconn International Holdings invested $200 million in GoPro. At that time the Foxconn investment valued the company at $2.25 billion.

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"We talk about wearables all the time, whether it's Google Glass or Fitbit. Well, GoPro is probably the most successful wearable electronics company out there," said Stephen Baker, vice president of industry analysis at NPD Group, a consumer market research firm.

"It is more than a camera. It's not just a standard piece of hardware. There is a lifestyle and brand associated with it," Baker added.

Correction: This story has been updated to reflect the proper attribution for Woodman's quote, and the status of the banks underwriting the deal.

—By Mark Berniker and Josh Lipton, CNBC Silicon Valley. Kayla Tausche contributed. Follow them on Twitter @markberniker and @CNBCJosh and @kaylatausche