In 1983, six businessmen incorporated a new type of restaurant under the brand name “Hooters.” Since first opening in 1983, the Hooters franchise has experienced rapid growth, amassing peak revenues of $960 million in 2007. Now, while I won’t call the founders of Hooters “revolutionary” geniuses, they did nonetheless introduce a new form of dining experience to the restaurant industry, one based on greasy bar food and beautiful young women in crop tops.
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Three IPOs, One Clear Winner
So far this year, 43 companies have made their publicly traded debuts. As a whole, IPOs have experienced a solid year thus far, raising nearly $7 billion YTD and averaging returns of 22%. Last week alone, seven companies issued IPOs, including four companies trading at valuations of over $1 billion. Among them were popular online retailer Esty, which specializes in selling handmade goods, and high-frequency trading firm Virtu Financial (VIRT).
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5 Terrible Tech IPOs
2014 proved to be the year of initial public offerings (IPOs). In America alone, 275 companies issued common class stock, the most since 2000 (when over 400 companies engaged in IPOs). Led by Chinese E-Commerce giant Alibaba (BABA), U.S. IPOs in 2014 raised over $85 billion in capital, an increase of more than 40% Y/Y compared to 2013. Alibaba alone raised a record-breaking $22 billion, besting both Facebook’s (FB) 2012 IPO ($16 billion) and Visa’s (V) 2008 IPO ($17.8 billion).
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When Billionaires Clash
Ever since Alibaba (BABA) had its record-shattering U.S. IPO, it appears the Chinese e-commerce giant and its American competitor, Amazon (AMZN), are destined for a Wall Street showdown. In an unpredictable market, with many potential outcomes, I will focus on two questions: 1) can Amazon convert its R&D investments into positive quarterly reports and 2) will Alibaba continue to build upon its momentum and run Amazon out of American markets?
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Recording GoPro's Success
Not even four months removed from its June 26th IPO, ultra-portable video camera maker GoPro (GPRO) has seen its stock price gain over 300% from its initial offering price, peaking at over $98. Since its IPO, GoPro’s stock has been one of the top performing securities in the market, and was up an astounding 80.89% in September alone (one of the most volatile months on record).
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Alibaba Larger Than Amazon & eBay
In the span of about a year, Alibaba (BABA) went from a massive, yet relatively unknown e-Commerce company (located in China), to being the largest IPO in U.S. history. On its first day alone Alibaba’s stock surged an incredible 38%, while simultaneously shattering records once held by companies like Facebook (FB) and Visa (V).
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Arista Networks IPO
Last Friday, June 6, 2014, cloud-networking company, Arista Networks (ANET), made its public debut on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). The company’s shares were initially priced at $43. Although Cisco (CSCO), IBM, and Microsoft (MSFT) have dominated the networking market for the past two decades, Arista may finally present a credible challenge to these tech behemoths. Investors showed optimism in Arista’s future, as shares hit $59.72 in the first week of its IPO and now sit at roughly $65.
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