And What About This Booming IPO Activity?

Could this be the age of IPOs? I think “yes.”  

In 2014, there were 275 IPOs. We haven’t seen these kinds of numbers since the dot-com era.  According to a Money Morning report (titled The Five Biggest 2015 IPOs to Watch), companies that IPOed in 2014 were on average more successful than their counterparts 10 years ago. New stocks have averaged a 13.1% jump from their offer prices this year. Over the previous 10 years, new stocks gained 9.8% on average, the report states.

And 2015 is off to a great start with extremely successful IPOs like Box Inc. and Shake Shack Inc., both valued in the billions on opening day. Box Inc. priced its shares at $14, above the expected range of $11 to $13, and trading opened at $20.20. The company was valued at $1.7 billion. Shares of gourmet hamburger chain Shake Shack Inc. soared 150 percent in their first few minutes of trading, valuing the company at nearly $2 billion.

Currently in the works are seven new IPOs which are expected to raise $9 billion this week alone. They are Inovalon Holdings (INOV), Sol-Wind Renewable Power, LP (SLWD), Great Ajax (AJX) Invitae (NVTA), Bellerophon Therapeutics (BLPH), AutoGenomics (AGMX) and Avenue Financial Holdings (AVNU).  Other high profile companies expected to file for IPO in 2015 include Uber, Airbnb Inc. and GoPro. All this IPO activity is a great sign that the economy is growing and the financial markets are strong.

Any company that has been through an IPO knows  there are a lot of factors to consider when you announce IPO plans – producing financials, filing with the SEC, meeting with investment banks, and communicating to potential investors. When I talk to companies considering an IPO, there is a growing concern from CFOs about the overall cost of an IPO, which can run into the hundred thousands.

For many companies, financial-printing bills are their third-largest expense, after lawyer and banker fees, according to an article in the Wall Street Journal.  The WSJ article mentions how some major financial printers inflate their rates, sometimes by hundreds of thousands of dollars.  With IPOs on the rise, it appears that some printers are looking to capitalize on this trend.  However, this practice hurts the credibility of the entire financial printing industry.

At Edgar Agents, we do things differently. We offer flat rates that help keep costs down. The Edgar Agents IPO package consists of one price for printing the initial registration statement, amendments, correspondence filings and two print runs. With fixed fees and custom pricing packages (if required), IPOs can trust that the final bill will not have unexpected charges.

If your company or a company you work with is considering an IPO in 2015, you can trust Edgar Agents to keep IPO costs down while ensuring that the company is compliant and under budget. Call Edgar Agents today to find out more about our services and how our customized pricing packages can help you save money.