The IPO Buzz: Twitter, Hot Stuff and China

But the media circus is fixated on Twitter.

 

The first shoe fell on Thursday, Oct. 3, 2013, when Twitter announced plans for an IPO to raise $1.0 billion.

 

The media went into a frenzy.

 

The other shoe dropped on Thursday, Oct. 24, when Twitter announced plans to offer 70 million shares at $17 to $20 each to raise about $1.3 billion. Separately, its investment bankers set the pricing date for Wednesday evening, Nov. 6, to trade Thursday morning, Nov. 7, on the New York Stock Exchange.

 

The media went into hysterics.

 

But we have to get through this week first. There is a lot on the calendar that has gone unnoticed.

 

To begin with, the experts see a lot of mouthwatering deals. There are 10 IPOs on the calendar. Six are “IPOs of Interest” – two based in the United States, one in Bermuda, one in France and two headquartered in China.

 

Worth noting: The return of China-based IPOs to the U.S. capital markets. In case you hadn’t noticed, that sector has been on fire in the aftermarket; more in a minute.

 

 

Let’s start with four of this week’s six “IPOs of Interest”  listed in alphabetical order:

 

Container Store Group (TCS – proposed) is a Coppell, Texas-based storage and organization specialty retailer operating 62 stores in 22 states and the District of Columbia. Container Store believes it is the only national retailer devoted solely to this category. In 2012, the company derived its sales from about 10,500 unique stock-keeping units organized into 16 distinct lifestyle departments from about 700 worldwide vendors. The company, formed in 1978, has about 5,100 employees.

 

Underwriters plan to offer 12.5 million shares of Container Store Group at $14 to $16 each to raise about $187.5 million. The IPO is expected to trade on the New York Stock Exchange. The joint-lead managers are: J.P. Morgan, Barclays and Credit Suisse. The co-managers are: Morgan Stanley, BofA Merrill Lynch, Wells Fargo Securities, Jefferies and Guggenheim Securities.

 

 

Criteo S.A. (CRTO – proposed) is a Paris-based global technology company that enables e-commerce companies to leverage data to efficiently and effectively engage and convert their customers. The company offers personalized retargeting that works with Internet retailers to track activity on their websites and optimize their advertising placement decisions based on that activity and other data. Criteo operates in 30 markets around the world. The company, formed in 2005, has about 746 employees.

 

Underwriters plan to offer 7.2 million American Depositary Shares of Criteo at $23 to $26 each to raise about $176.4 million. The IPO is expected to trade on the New York Stock Exchange. The joint-lead managers are: J.P. Morgan, Deutsche Bank Securities, Jefferies and Stifel. The co-managers are: Pacific Crest Securities, SOCIETE GENERALE and William Blair.

 

 

Essent Group Ltd. (ESNT – proposed) is a Bermuda-based private mortgage insurance company formed to serve the U.S. housing finance industry. Since writing its first policy in May 2010, Essent Group has grown to an estimated 12.0 percent market share for the three months ended June 30, 2013, up from 8.6 percent for the year ended Dec. 31, 2012, and 3.9 percent for the year ended Dec. 31, 2011. Formed in 2010, the company has about 259 employees.

 

Underwriters plan to offer 19.7 million shares of Essent Group at $13.50 to $15.50 each to raise about $285 million. The company plans to sell 17 million shares and selling shareholders plan to sell 2.7 million shares in the offering. The IPO is expected to trade on the New York Stock Exchange. The joint-lead managers are: Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan, Barclays and Credit Suisse. The co-managers are: BofA Merrill Lynch, Dowling & Partners Securities, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods (A Stifel Company),  Macquarie Capital and Wells Fargo Securities.

 

 

Surgical Care Affiliates (SCAI – proposed) is a Deerfield, Illinois-based provider of outpatient surgery facilities. The company employees about 5,000 teammates and each year more than 7,500 physicians perform procedures in Surgical Care Affiliates facilities in 185 facilities in 34 states. More than 2,000 of these physicians, along with over 45 leading health systems, have partnered with Surgical Care. Formed in 1982, the company has about 12,500 employees.

Underwriters plan to offer about 9.8 million shares of Surgical Care Affiliates at $21 to $24 each to raise $220 million. The company plans to sell about 7.9 million shares and selling shareholders plan to sell about 1.9 million shares in the offering. The IPO is expected to trade on the NASDAQ Global Market. The joint-lead managers are: J.P. Morgan and Citigroup. The co-managers are: BofA Merrill Lynch, Barclays, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, BMO Capital Markets, SunTrust Robinson Humphrey and TPG Capital.

 

Since March 22, 2012, when Vipshop Holdings (VIPS) priced its IPO at $6.50 per share (now $66.66, UP 925.5 percent from its initial offering price), there have been a total of six China-based companies going public in the U.S. capital markets. At Friday’s close, Oct. 25, five were above their initial offering prices; one had been acquired at $13 per share, UP from $6, its initial offering price, and the average gain for all six was 272.9 percent. That was the past. Let’s move on to the future.

 

This week has two China-based IPOs on the calendar:

 

58.com (WUBA – proposed) is a Beijing online marketplace serving local merchants and consumers in China. The company’s online marketplace lets its users connect, share information and conduct business. 58.com’s online marketplace offers what it believes to be credible and up-to-date local information on housing, jobs, used goods, automotive, pets, tickets, yellow pages and other local services in about 380 cities. The company was formed in 2011. It has about 5,254 employees.

 

Underwriters plan to offer 11 million American Depositary Shares of 58.com at $11 to $13 each to raise $154 million. The IPO is expected to trade on the New York Stock Exchange. The joint-lead managers are: Morgan Stanley, Credit Suisse and Citigroup. The co-manager is: Pacific Crest Securities.

 

 

Qunar Cayman Islands Ltd. (QUNR – proposed) is a Beijing search-based commerce platform for the travel industry in China. The company’s services enable people to find best-value deals by aggregating and processing highly fragmented travel product information from tens of thousands of travel service providers into an organized and user-friendly display through its proprietary technology. The company, formed in 2006, has about 1,699 employees.

 

Underwriters plan to offer 11.1 million American Depositary Shares of Qunar Cayman at $11 to $13 each to raise $154 million. The IPO is expected to trade on the NASDAQ Global Select Market. The joint-lead managers are: Goldman Sachs (Asia) and Deutsche Bank Securities. The co-managers are: Stifel, Pacific Crest Securities and China Renaissance Securities (Hong Kong) Limited.

 

 

Looking into next week, the calendar has six IPOs, including Twitter. They are expected to raise over $2.2 billion. But more names could pop onto the calendar by the time that Monday, Nov. 4, rolls around.

 

Stay tuned.