NYSE Euronext (NYX) led the global market for Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) in the first quarter of 2011, with nearly $15 billion in total capital raised on its markets, more than any exchange group in the world. The NYSE so far this year also has led the U.S. IPO market, with 25 U.S. IPOs raising $14.7 billion, or 92% [1] of total U.S. domestic proceeds. During the quarter, the NYSE listed IPOs from China, Colombia, the Netherlands and South Korea, demonstrating the global nature of the NYSE’s U.S. IPO activity.
Strong IPO momentum in first-quarter 2011 was punctuated by several private equity (PE) backed companies going public on the NYSE, including HCA (NYSE: HCA), Kinder Morgan Inc. (NYSE: KMI), The Nielsen Company (NYSE: NLSN) and BankUnited (NYSE: BKU). In March, HCA’s $3.79 billion IPO marked the largest PE backed IPO in history, surpassing the previous record PE-backed IPO by Kinder Morgan Inc. (NYSE: KMI), which raised $2.9 billion in February. The Nielsen Company (NYSE: NLSN), which raised $1.65 billion in January, also ranked in the top-10 of largest-ever PE-backed IPOs. With the successful completion of these transactions, nine out of 10 of the largest-ever PE-backed IPOs in the world are listed on the NYSE. In the first- quarter 2011, the NYSE also listed venture capital (VC) backed IPOs, including Demand Media, Inc. (NYSE: DMD), Neophotonics Corp. (NYSE: NPTN) and Qihoo 360 (NYSE: QIHU), which rose 134% on its first trading day, making it the third-best first day gain for a U.S.-listed IPO in the last 10 years. The NYSE also listed five of nine technology-based companies to go public in the U.S. during first-quarter 2011.
“NYSE Euronext captured the growing momentum in global IPO listings this year more than any other exchange group in the world,” said Scott Cutler, Co-Head of U.S. Listings and Cash Execution, NYSE Euronext. “We saw a significant uptick in the amount of money raised, a significant number of foreign issues listing in the U.S., and tremendous activity in the PE-backed sectors. A strong backlog of deals from every region globally combined with new transactions from high-growth-, technology- and VC-backed enterprises seeking to go public bodes well for the remainder of the year. In spite of concerns about the strength of the economic recovery, we are optimistic about IPO momentum building for the remainder of the year.”
Today, SuccessFactors Inc. announced it will transfer its listing from Nasdaq to the NYSE and cross-list on the European markets of NYSE Euronext. SuccessFactors Inc. is the 12th company to seek a NYSE Euronext Fast-Path cross-listing since this convenient, cost-effective European cross-listing program for NYSE-listed companies was announced. The NYSE has gained 4 transfers from Nasdaq thus far in 2011, and lost none. That follows an active year for transfers in 2010, when the NYSE attracted 14 transfers from Nasdaq.