Groupon Jumps 40%
By LYNN COWAN Daily deals site Groupon Inc. opened at 28 a share on the Nasdaq, up 40% from its initial public offering price of 20. Shares were recently changing hands at 27.96 a share, up 39.8%. "This is good. This IPO sends a clear signal to the people at Zynga and Facebook. The signal is that it's time to move forward," said Ben Holmes, president of IPO research firm Morningnotes.com. Online games developer Zynga Inc., which registered to go public in July, is expected to price in the weeks ahead. Social media giant Facebook Inc. hasn't yet filed for an IPO, but is widely expected to go public in 2012. Though the company's IPO-price valuation of roughly 12.7 billion is below the 15 billion to 20 billion that it originally projected, the deal is still considered a success for Groupon and its bankers. <a href="http://www.womenfashionbag.com/burberry-pleat-detail-check-print-satchel-in-beat-checkblack-p-19327.html"><strong>burberry pink scarf</strong></a> They were able to bring to market an unprofitable company that was dogged by criticism and negative press during the months leading up to it launch, and they did it during a time of high broader market volatility, which makes accurate pricing difficult. "Since LinkedIn came public in May, this is the most-watched IPO to come down the pipeline," said Lee Simmons, IPO industry specialist with Dun & Bradstreet. "Doing well will get some buzz rolling again in the IPO market." Groupon's early trading gains aren't stratospheric, compared to the 135% pop that Chinese Internet stock Qihoo 360 Technology Co. Ltd. experienced in March, but it is the best showing since tea retailer Teavana Holdings Inc. gained 64% in July. Demand for Groupon's offering was strong, with high levels of investor attendance at its marketing road shows. Bankers designed the deal to play on that demand, offering just 5.5% of Groupon's outstanding shares to the public, excluding an over-allotment option that could add another 4.5 million shares to the deal if it gets exercised. That percentage is a mere sliver that created scarcity in the allocations that buyers received. If Groupon can hang on to its gains and major U.S. indices don't take a prolonged nosedive, the stage is now set for a modest pickup in IPO issuance through the end of the year. Bankers are gearing up to bring a total of a dozen IPOs public in the U.S. in November before the Thanksgiving holidays, and then aim to price as many as eight to 10 <a href="http://www.womenfashionbag.com/chanel-hobos-c-53_58.html"><strong>handbag chanel</strong></a> more—if the overall environment holds up—in early to mid-December. Among those expected before the end of the year are local business ratings website Angie's List Inc. and online games developer Zynga Inc. Although that level of anticipated IPOs is meager for November and December under normal market conditions—in 2007, there were sometimes 10 to 12 deals in a single week--it represents a leap forward for the current market. Beginning in August, when the broader stock market skidded into a period of deep downturns and high volatility, the IPO market chilled considerably. There were no new stocks launched in September, and only two in each of August and October. Strong stock index gains in October set the stage for bankers to consider rolling out some IPOs, though continued volatility and macroeconomic issues such as the European debt crisis still weigh on their <a href="http://www.womenfashionbag.com/lv-monogram-denim-c-20_30.html"><strong>loui vuitton</strong></a> ability to price new deals. Groupon is the first deal to price above range and trade higher since July, when C&J Energy Services Inc. priced above its expected range and gained 5% during its debut. Since then, no offering has priced within range and then gone on to make a gain, although two deals that cut their prices last month, Ubiquiti Networks Inc. and Zeltiq Aesthetics Inc., enjoyed first-day gains of 16.7% and 19.2%, respectively.
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