Killer IPOs: A Cautionary Tale

Kevin S. Price submits:

Back in the Summer of 2007, we suggested that investors should be cautious about buying whatever Steve Schwartzman was selling, namely shares in his private equity operation, Blackstone Group (BX).

One memorable episode from that time had us sitting across a desk with a prospective client who told us he was going to stick with his advisor at Morgan Stanley (MS) because, hey, that guy had the scratch to get him in on the Blackstone IPO. And now we know the rest of the story.

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MacroMarkets Real Estate ETFs Delayed

IndexUniverse submits:

MacroMarkets is planning to delay the first-ever initial public offering open-auction launch of exchange-traded funds, which had been initially set for an opening auction date of tomorrow. Market conditions, rather than lack of interest in the planned U.S. housing market ETFs, have led the company to delay the launch.

Whitney White, chief technology officer at WR Hambrecht + Co, who is in charge of the IPO open auction of the MacroShares Major Metro Housing Up ETF (UMM) and Major Metro Housing Down ETF (DMM), said that there is the sense right now that uncertainty is ...

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In Search of the IPO Market

Tech Confidential submits:

We were trying to wait until the stock market showed some signs of stability before discussing the following report...alas. Anyway, Renaissance Capital LLC earlier this week came out with a detailed study seeking to answer the question: When will the IPO market return? The quick answer: The IPO market will stage "at least a modest comeback in January, 2009." Worst-case scenario (which it seems prudent to discuss) is that IPO activity will not return until March of 2009, "and then sputter on for several months."

While a strong stock market is typically ...

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Dearth of IPOs Could Be a Bullish Sign

No, really. When was the last time you saw an IPO in the wild? or in captivity?

According to the Standard & Poor’s it has been almost 3 months since we had an IPO. Unless I’m mistaken, that would be Rackspace (RAX) a internet hosting company which has seen its share fall almost 60% (from the offer price of $12.50).

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Rackspace Spends IPO Money on Two New Acquisitions

Tech Confidential submits:

Like Indiana Jones sliding under that descending stone door just as it slams shut, Web hosting company Rackspace Inc. (RAX) was one of the last tech companies to go public back in August before the IPO market sealed up. Indeed, the company was the only VC-backed tech company to go out in the third quarter, raising $187.50 million. Bad timing. As of Wednesday afternoon, Rackspace shares were trading at $5.01, 60% below the company's $12.50 per share offer price, a level the stock has never touched again.

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Safety-Kleen IPO Overview

Abbi Adest submits:

Safety-Kleen (SK) is North America's leading provider of used oil recycling and parts cleaning.

All quotations are from the company’s most recent S-1 filing, with links provided

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Crisis Crushing M&A, IPO Activity

Research Recap submits:

Mergers and acquisitions activity and US initial public offerings of venture-backed companies are on pace this year to hit their lowest point this decade , according to new data from Dow Jones VentureSource. During the third quarter, venture-backed companies produced just $4.57 billion through IPOs and M&A, down 66% from the $13.4 billion generated in the year-ago period.

The IPO marke t continues to be shut off for venture-backed companies, as only Rackspace Hosting Inc. (NYSE: RAX) went public in the third quarter, compared with 11 such offerings a year ...

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No IPO Flow

Hickey and Walters (Bespoke) submit:

There have been just 54 initial public offerings so far this year, which is the lowest number through September of any year since at least 1991. The second lowest was during the dot com hangover of 2001, when there were 66 through September. After a decent amount of 15 offerings in January, we saw 8 in February, 5 in March, 5 in April, 8 in May, 4 in June, July and August, and just 1 so far in September.

The lack of revenues from IPOs, while probably the least of ...

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Titan (TITN) Relative Strength

Stock of the Day - Update Titan Machinery Inc. (TITN) Friday’s Closing Price: TITN - $22.40

Titan Machinery Inc., which runs construction and agriculture equipment store,s raised its full-year guidance for revenue and earnings per share earlier this week. Its fiscal second-quarter profit more than doubled as all three of the company’s businesses posted revenue growth. Net income for the three months ended July 31 jumped to $3.3 million from $1.4 million a year earlier and revenue surged to $134.9 million from $85.8 million.

The stock has been holding up rather well despite the weakness in the current ...

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Marc Andreessen on Financial Crises, No IPOs, and Obama

Kevin Maney submits:

Just before the worst of the market meltdown, I interviewed tech stalwart Marc Andreessen in front of an audience at Silicon Valley's Churchill Club. We got talking about the situation on Wall Street and how it has affected tech IPOs -- i.e., there are none. That led to an exchange about who he supports for president.

From the interview transcript:

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Skies Darken for VCs, IPOs and the M&A Market

Ken Schachter submits:

Venture capitalists may not be exposed to toxic mortgage securities, but they, and the startups that they fund, will feel the pain, nonetheless. A Yale University professor and a think tank analyst said the turmoil on Wall Street will extend the current deep freeze in the initial public offering market, curb merger and acquisition activity, and make it harder to raise money from limited partners.

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SMG's $55 Million IPO Plan: Stockpile Indium

Greentech Media submits:

By Jennifer Kho

If thin-film solar companies such as Nanosolar, Miasole and SoloPower succeed, a new company called SMG Indium Resources Ltd. (ITD) could also benefit.

Complete Story »

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More Greentech Companies To Go Public

Greentech Media submits:

Italian utility giant Enel is considering spinning off 40 percent of its clean-energy business in a public offering next year, according to research firm New Energy Finance (via Clean Edge).

The news comes a few days after U.S. wind-power company Noble Environmental Power filed to sell 23.4 million shares in an initial public offering – despite an ongoing investigation from New York's attorney general.

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iRobot IPO vs. WowWee's Pseudo IPO

Badger The Lion submits:

iRobot (IRBT) had about $76 million in cash after its IPO in 2005, which was priced at $24.00 per share for approximately 23.4 million shares.

After WowWee's pseudo reverse merger into Optimal Group, Inc. (OPMR), and OPMR’s Optimal Payments subsidiary assets sales, OPMR will likely have significantly more cash than what IRBT had after its IPO, about the same number of shares [with OPMR’s share buyback], and about the same revenue [$142 million revenue for IRBT in 2005 vs. WowWee 2008E revenue of $130 to $140 million].

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Chipmaker Avago Files for a $400M IPO

Tech Confidential submits:

Sometimes a big juicy IPO is just what the market needs to shake loose from its doldrums. It's hard to tell whether private equity-owned Avago Technologies Ltd.'s upcoming offering will be such a seminal event, but it sure is the biggest deal to consider plying the turbulent public markets in some time.

The former Agilent Technologies Inc. (A) chip unit, which was acquired by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts and Silver Lake Partners for $2.66 billion in 2005, in one of the biggest tech LBOs, filed on Thursday to go public.

Complete Story » ...

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The Ensign Group: Looking Forward to Long-Term Growth

Joshua Hayes submits:

This Mission Viejo, CA company operates 54 skilled nursing facilities and 7 assisted living facilities in California, Arizona, Texas, Utah, and Idaho. One thing is for sure about our population: it is aging and it will continue to age as we continue to find drugs that help us live longer and healthier lives.

Proof that The Ensign Group (ENSG) is doing well early on is its recent growth the past three quarters in EPS, with 20%, 55%, and 19% growth. That, combined with revenue growth the past eight quarters of 20%, 15%, 18%, 17%, ...

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Asset Alliance IPO Nixed (Again)

Greg Newton submits:

Bruce Lipnick’s latest attempt to unload stock in Asset Alliance Corp, his accident-prone alternative investment manager roll-up, is over.

Tailwind Financial Inc (“Tailwind”) (AMEX: TNF), a blank check development stage company, and Asset Alliance Corporation (“Asset Alliance”), a Delaware corporation, today jointly announced that they have terminated the Agreement and Plan of Merger between Tailwind and Asset Alliance dated January 8, 2008...The decision to terminate was based on the belief that the transaction would not receive shareholder approval due to market conditions in the financial services sector...Asset Alliance will seek other sources of capital ...

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Grid-based Energy Storage: Birth of a Giant

John Petersen submits:

As expected, A123 Systems filed a registration statement for a planned $175 million IPO last Friday. I believe the A123 IPO, together with recent industry reports by Merriman Curhan Ford and Lux Research, will begin to draw attention to the energy storage sector in a whole new way and mark the beginning of a major upward trend in a basic industry that's been undervalued for years. While it seems that nobody really wants to talk about batteries in a wired world, the fact is we couldn't be wired without them. And as we shift to alternative ...

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Are IPOs Heating Up? A123 Files.

Erick Schonfeld submits:

Companies itching to IPO are braving the markets again. This morning, Rackspace had its IPO (RAX) and today nanotech battery company A123 Systems filed its IPO registration document [an S-1] with the SEC. The Boston-based company is hoping to raise $175 million in an IPO. (It’s already raised $132 million in venture funding from Sequoia, General Motors, Motorola, Qualcomm, and others).

A123 Systems makes next-gen lithium ion batteries for electric and hybrid vehicles, as well as for smaller portable devices. It is working closely with GM and Black & Decker. ...

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Rackspace IPO Settles for Half Its Hoped-For Price

Erick Schonfeld submits:

After filing for an IPO last April in which it hoped to raise $400 million, Web hosting provider (and cloud-computing aspirant) Rackspace finally priced its IPO last night at $12.50 a share. That would have brought in $187.5 million, or half what it was hoping for. But it opened this morning at $10 (ticker: RAX). It’s been been going up since then to about $11.

And Rackspace is a solid company financially. But in this market, any IPO is a sign of hope (there were no VC-backed IPOs last quarter). ...

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Latest Pictures - Newstrack India

these would put huge pressure in the growth rate of India . “The growth...“India’s GDP may slow down as against current growth rate ... of Service of India Ltd (CRISIL) in an official released on Tuesday. It will grow 8.1 Growth of power sector ...

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Realty stocks not part of Friday bash at D-Street - Economic Times

CHENNAI: Even as markets snapped a seven-day losing streak and sensex rose 5.5%, real estate stocks were grounded. Investors in the sector did not interpret the reduction in prices announced by realty associations-CREDAI and NAREDCO-as a positive ...

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Bruce Willis sues over 'green rubber' investment - ABS-CBN

LOS ANGELES – "Live Free or Die Hard" actor Bruce Willis has sued a Malaysian prince and his company over a $2 million investment in "green rubber" the actor wants returned. Prince Imran Ibni Tuanku Ja'afar and Datuk Vinod B. Sekhar, principals of ...

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IPO VIEW-End of one IPO drought, start of new one? - Forbes

NEW YORK, Nov 21 (Reuters) - This week's initial public offering by Grand Canyon Education Inc broke the longest streak without an IPO in the United States since 1974, but it is not likely to open the floodgates to new IPOs anytime soon, bankers and ...

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Bruce Willis sues over "green rubber" investment - Reuters UK

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - "Live Free or Die Hard" actor Bruce Willis has sued a Malaysian prince and his company over a $2 million (1.35 million pound) investment in "green rubber" the actor wants returned. Prince Imran Ibni Tuanku Ja'afar and Datuk ...

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Co-op Bank taps reserves to cover shortfall in IPO - East African Standard

The Co-operative Bank will be forced to cover an anticipated gap in its Initial Public Offering (IPO) target, by tapping into its retained earnings, after the issue was significantly undersubscribed. The bank announced in a statement yesterday that ...

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Target says it won't pursue Pershing Square deal - Duluth News Tribune

Target Corp. said late Friday it will not implement a major shareholder's proposal to create a real estate investment trust, saying the potential value it would create is "highly speculative." The retailer said in a news release that after evaluating ...

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David Stevenson: Distressed private equity - Financial Times

I n quieter moments amid the market madness, I almost feel sorry for hedge funds. They stand accused of stoking the fires of volatility and leverage but, in my book, they’re far from the worst offenders. For me, the title of “Chief Potential ...

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Latest Pictures - Newstrack India

these would put huge pressure in the growth rate of India . “The growth...“India’s GDP may slow down as against current growth rate ... of Service of India Ltd (CRISIL) in an official released on Tuesday. It will grow 8.1 Growth of power sector ...

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Target rejects Pershing's real estate proposal - MSN MoneyCentral

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Target Corp on Friday rejected as "highly speculative" proposals made by hedge fund manager William Ackman that he said would unlock the value of its real estate and boost the discount retailer's sagging stock price. "Following a ...

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UPDATE 2-Target rejects Pershing's real estate proposal - Reuters

NEW YORK, Nov 21 (Reuters) - Target Corp (TGT.N: Quote , Profile , Research , Stock Buzz ) on Friday rejected as "highly speculative" proposals made by hedge fund manager William Ackman that he said would unlock the value of its real estate and boost ...

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IPO VIEW-End of one IPO drought, start of new one? - Reuters

NEW YORK, Nov 21 (Reuters) - This week's initial public offering by Grand Canyon Education Inc (LOPE.O: Quote , Profile , Research , Stock Buzz ) broke the longest streak without an IPO in the United States since 1974, but it is not likely to open ...

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Target says it won't pursue Pershing Square deal - Duluth News Tribune

Target Corp. says it will not implement a major shareholder's proposal to create a real estate investment trust, saying the value it would create is "highly speculative." The retailer said Friday that after evaluating the proposal, it won't pursue ...

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Goldman shares hover above $53 1999 IPO price - Boston Globe

CHARLOTTE, N.C.— Shares of Goldman Sachs Group Inc. hovered above their 1999 initial public offering price of $53 in premarket trading Friday as the investment bank continues to fight off fears surrounding its financial health. Shares in Goldman ...

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What killed IPOs? Technology and regulation? - Reuters Blogs

No one disputes that the IPO market is pretty much dead, notwithstanding yesterday’s IPO by Grand Canyon , a deal that broke a 15 week streak without an IPO. With the stock market as crazy as it’s been, IPOs aren’t likely to stage a miraculous ...

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A New IPO Market Urged - Red Herring

With the market for initial public offerings irretrievably broken, a new system must be developed to take its place, a new study says. In a report entitled, “Why Are IPOs in the ICU?” auditor and consultancy GrantThornton calls for a new ...

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Qatar, Kuwait funds eye Warsaw exchange stake - Gulf Times

WARSAW: Poland will probably sell shares of the Warsaw Stock Exchange directly to selected investors from the Middle East, scrapping earlier plans for an initial public offering as market turmoil continues. Poland, which holds 98.8% of the exchange ...

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Yankee Equity Solution ("YES") Launches $50 Million Fund for Mass ... - Phramalive.com

Yankee Equity Solution (YES) has launched the $50 million “YES Medical Technology Fund” , a private equity vehicle to help Mass.-based medical technology companies with revenues and profits to expand their commercialization efforts. Specifically ...

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IPO VIEW-End of one IPO drought, start of new one? - Forbes

NEW YORK, Nov 21 (Reuters) - This week's initial public offering by Grand Canyon Education Inc broke the longest streak without an IPO in the United States since 1974, but it is not likely to open the floodgates to new IPOs anytime soon, bankers and ...

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Nitromed Is Archemix's Back Door onto the Stock Market - Seekingalpha.com

Nitromed ( NTMD ) has been in trouble for several years now. They're a perfect example of a dog that caught a car: a company that was demolished by actually getting its drug on the market. No one wanted to pay for it, though, and after all that ...

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