July’s 2018 IPO market went out with a bang on Friday. Bankers priced 11 deals in the month’s final week and raised July’s total traffic to 20 IPOs. That was 53.8 percent above the median average of 13 IPOs for the month of July from 2001 through 2017.
That was interesting because the month’s first IPOs did not start trading until Wednesday, July 18. The July 4th holiday break closed down the IPO production line.
This week August begins – and its calendar is not nearly as ambitious as July’s. Bankers expect to price five IPOs this week to raise about $1.43 billion. But before we get into this week’s traffic, let take a quick look at what recent Augusts have brought us.
The August IPO market from 2001 through 2017 showed the median 17-year average for the month was 8 IPOs, according to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filings. The busiest August was 2005 with a total of 36 IPOs. The slowest August was 2002 with only one IPO – and last year, August 2017, just four deals got done.
We already have six IPOs for August, with five scheduled for this week and one for next week. When the SEC’s filing window opens for business again on Monday, July 30th, it will be waiting for the bankers to come forth with a few nuggets for the rest of the month.
Now let’s take a stroll through this week’s IPO calendar, organized by pricing and trading dates.
Tuesday evening for Wednesday morning
Bionano Genomics (BHGO proposed), based in San Diego, California, is a life sciences instrumentation company in the genome analysis space. The company is developing the Saphyr system. The platform is for ultra-sensitive and ultra-specific structural variation detection that enables researchers and clinicians to accelerate the search for new diagnostics and therapeutic targets and streamline the study of changes in chromosomes, a field known as cytogenetics. Note: Insiders have issued indications of interest to buy $6.35 million, or 21.1 percent, of the $30.1 million IPO.
(For more information about this company and others on the IPO calendar, please check the profiles found on IPOScoop.com’s website.)
Wednesday evening for Thursday morning
Cushman & Wakefield plc (CWK proposed) based in St. Helier, Jersey, considers itself one of the top three global commercial real estate services firm. The company operates from about 400 offices in 70 countries and manages about 3.5 billion square feet of commercial real estate space on behalf of institutional, corporate and private clients. Note: Vanke Service (Hong Kong)Co. Ltd. has agreed to purchase in a private placement from the company an aggregate number of ordinary shares that will represent ownership of 4.9 percent of Cushman & Wakefield’s outstanding ordinary shares after the IPO.
Forum Merger II (FMCIU proposed), based in New York City, is a newly organized “blank check” company whose management team and board members have extensive management experience in a diverse range of industries, including business services, distribution, media, telecommunications, technology, retail, consumer products, education, energy, real estate and financial services.
Sonos (SONO proposed), based in Santa Barbara, California, says it invented wireless multi-room home audio. Its home sound system, which it calls the Smart Home Sound System, lets consumers wirelessly stream TV, movies, music and other content through multiple rooms in the home via Sonos speakers and components and the company’s proprietary software platform.
Note: The company is offering 5.55 million shares and selling shareholders are offering 8.33 million shares.
Thursday evening for Friday Morning
Arlo Technologies (ARLO proposed), based in San Jose, California, is a subsidiary of Netgear. The company offers an intelligent cloud infrastructure and mobile app with a variety of smart connected devices that transform the way people experience the connected lifestyle. The company’s cloud-based platform creates a seamless end-to-end connected lifestyle solution that gives users visibility, insight and a powerful means to help protect and connect with the people and things that matter most to them. Arlo enables users to monitor their environments and engage in real time with their families and businesses from any location with a Wi-Fi or a cellular network internet connection. Its smart connected devices include cameras, baby monitors and security lights.
August’s First Full Week
This brings us to the week of Aug. 6th: There is just one $45 million deal on the calendar. But anything can happen when the U. S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s filing window opens for business again on Monday morning, July 30th.
Stay tuned.
Disclosure: Neither the author nor anyone else on the IPOScoop.com staff has a position in any stocks mentioned, nor do we trade or invest in IPOs. The author and IPOScoop.com staff do not issue advice, recommendations or opinion.