Category Archives: The IPO Buzz

By: John E. Fitzgibbon, Jr.

Thunder and lightning swept into the market last week when a couple of tech IPOs got priced. When something like that happens, the first thing any Wall Streeter asks is: “That’s nice, but what do you have for us now?” The answer -– real estate investment trusts, or REITs. The next question is: Why switch from watching corn pop to grass grow?

By: John E. Fitzgibbon, Jr.

The midnight oil was burning bright on the syndicate desks over the last two weeks. A tsunami of secondary offerings slammed into Wall Street as 50 deals were priced that raised nearly $30 billion, according to available reports. Oh, and by the way, one IPO got out the door last week and there are another two on this week’s calendar.

 

By: John E. Fitzgibbon, Jr.

DigitalGlobe (NYSE: DGI) is expected to be May’s IPO curtain raiser when it’s priced this week. The new issue has already attracted a lot of media attention, and is reportedly a “hot issue.” Nevertheless, the deal carries some baggage. Here’s the story.

 

By: John E. Fitzgibbon, Jr.

The year’s first billion-dollar deal walked down the IPO runway last week. It was China Zhongwang Holdings, but its name was nowhere to be found on any U.S. new-issues calendar. The simple reason was the deal was not registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

 

By: John E. Fitzgibbon, Jr.

Watching today’s IPO market is much like watching grass grow. By Friday, April 24, this year’s new-issues calendar had produced just five deals. That’s not unexpected, given recent market conditions. Actually, it wasn’t all that long ago that we witnessed the same scenario unfold. It was in the 2002/2003 markets.

 

All the stars are falling into place for a revival of the new-issues market. Last week’s IPO aftermarket performance was the icing on the cake. Here’s what the “CSI” evidence tells us:

By: John E. Fitzgibbon, Jr.

Any banquet starts with an appetizer. So far this year, the IPO market has given us two tasty morsels. This week, bankers plan to add more appetizers to the 2009 IPO menu.

 

By: John E. Fitzgibbon, Jr.

“Coyote ugly” was the only way to describe the securities markets’ first quarter this year. But where’s there life, there’s hope. By the end of April’s first week, there were a few signs those times may be in the rear-view mirror.

By: John E. Fitzgibbon, Jr.

By now the whole world knows a Chinese IPO plans to make its debut in the U.S. capital markets this week. The deal is Changyou.com (NASDAQ: CYOU proposed), a carve-out from Sohu.com (Nasdaq: SOHU) and, if Changyou.com wiggles out the door, it’ll be the second Chinese IPO to see daylight in NYC’s financial district this year.

 

By: John E. Fitzgibbon, Jr.

In tandem with the calendar’s flip to the first day of spring on Friday, March 20th, the outdoor temperatures warmed up a bit and so did the climate on Wall Street.