Up to 8 IPOs Could Launch in the Coming Week

Investing

Published: February 7, 2016 9:10 am

Last Updated: January 13, 2020 1:31 pm

After markets failed to accept a single initial public offering (IPO) in January, the first week of February was a bit more propitious, with two offerings making the grade. That’s the good news; the less-good news is that there were a total of seven companies looking to break out last week.

The two companies that did make the grade were Editas Medicine Inc. (NASDAQ: EDIT), a genome editing company working to correct genetically defined diseases by correcting their disease-causing genes, and BeiGene Ltd. (NASDAQ: BGNE), a Chinese biopharmaceutical company developing immuno-oncology drugs for the treatment of cancer. Both offerings had a positive first day pop and both finished the week trading above their IPO pricing.

Through the week ending February 5, IPO ETF manager Renaissance Capital reported that two IPOs have priced in the United States so far this year, down more than 88% from a year ago. Total proceeds raised through last week equaled $300 million, down nearly 92% compared with the same period in 2015. Of the two IPOs that have gone off this year, both have come from the health care sector. Last year’s IPO total came in at $30 billion on 170 offerings. Renaissance Capital does not include “best efforts” or blank-check companies in its totals.

In the coming week four companies will be returning for another try, and another four appear set for a first go at the market.