July 29 (Reuters) - Data analytics firm SAS said on Thursday it was preparing for an initial public offering by 2024, weeks after a report said chip and software company Broadcom Inc (AVGO.O) was in talks to buy the company. Earlier this month, the Wall Street Journal reported that Broadcom was exploring a buyout deal that could value the North Carolina-based SAS between $15 billion and $20 billion. read more SAS provides data and analytics services to customers in 147 countries spread across several industries, including banking, healthcare, retail and manufacturing. The company, which was founded over four decades ago, said it made about $3 billion in revenue in 2020 and has long been profitable. (https://refini.tv/3BQJ1r3) The company"s software is used by more than 83,000 business, government and university sites, according to its website.