Our Q1 report on the IPO market is here. The key takeaway: Volatility paused the IPO rebound again, but markets have plenty of time to find solid ground.
We’ve been here before. Last March we also wrote about a strong start cut short by uncertainty. This time, headlines were dominated by the “SaaSpocalypse” and the Iran war rather than (or in addition to) tariffs and inflation.
Our report has the full picture. Read the preview, or get the complete report on IPO Pro.
When price stability returns, the IPO window should reopen relatively quickly, as it did last summer. A recent string of broken IPOs have made investors more cautious, but there's still demand for – and a pipeline of – high-quality deals.
On that note, Elon Musk’s SpaceX reportedly teed up a confidential filing for an offering that could raise $75 billion. That would make it the largest IPO of all time – by a margin of about $50 billion.
In the meantime, volatility continues to grip markets, so no pricings this past week. Coming up, HMH Holding (Nasdaq: HMH) is on tap to raise $216 million. The drilling equipment and services provider originally filed in August 2024, but surging oil prices make a clear case for “why now.”
Interest in defense tech and power infrastructure should fuel more listings in the near term. Recent filers include autonomous aircraft maker Aevex, defense electronics firm Arxis, and nuclear tech developer X-Energy.
More macro shocks weighed on benchmarks this week. The IPO Index slid -4.7%, underperforming the S&P 500 (-2.1%). Pork packer Smithfield Foods rose +15.4% on strong earnings. Circle plummeted -25.7% on reports that proposed legislation could hurt the stablecoin space.
Markets are closed this coming Friday ahead of Easter, so no newsletter next week.
Talk in two weeks,
Bill Smith
CEO and Founder
Renaissance Capital
|
Biggest price changes through
Mar 27th
in the
Renaissance IPO Index
|
||
|---|---|---|
| Top 5 | ||
| Smithfield Foods | SFD | 15.4% |
| Legence | LGN | 12.1% |
| Venture Global | VG | 10.9% |
| Arm Holdings | ARM | 8.9% |
| Atmus Filtration Technologies | ATMU | 4.2% |
| Bottom 5 | ||
| Circle Internet Group | CRCL | -25.7% |
| Netskope | NTSK | -18.9% |
| Karman Holdings | KRMN | -15.4% |
| Figma | FIG | -14.9% |
| Fermi | FRMI | -14.2% |
| Sectors | ||
| Consumer Staples | 8.1% | |
| Energy | 6.2% | |
| Consumer Discretionary | -1.2% | |
| Industrials | -2.2% | |
| Financials | -5.5% | |
| Health Care | -5.8% | |
| Technology | -7.6% | |
| Real Estate | -8.6% | |
Renaissance IPO ETF (NYSE symbol: IPO) tracks the Renaissance IPO Index
The Renaissance IPO Index returned -4.7% last week vs. -2.1% for the S&P 500.
