The IPOX® Week #655
IPOX® Europe (ETF: FPXE) surges +6.77%, major IPOX® indexes gain.
IPOX® International (ETF: FPXI) records fourth straight week of gains.
IPOX® SPAC (SPAC) gains +1.93%. 1 SPACs launched in the U.S. last week.
MENA deal flow steady. Arabian Drilling +26%; Dubai’s Empower to list.
WEEKLY IPOX® PERFORMANCE REVIEW: Amid a deceleration in U.S. CPI inflation and ensuing big plunge in U.S. rates and the U.S. dollar across the board, the IPOX® Indexes posted outsized gains ahead of U.S. options expiration week. For example, the broad-based and growth-focused IPOX® 100 U.S. (ETF: FPX) gained +3.12% to -29.20%, lagging the S&P 500 (SPX), which recorded the biggest intraday gain since April 2020 on Thursday. Big gains extended to markets outside the U.S., including the IPOX® Europe (ETF: FPXE) which added a massive +6.77% to -37.18% YTD and the IPOX® International (ETF: FPXI) which gained +3.78% to -33.84% YTD for a 4th straight week of gains. Across Asia-Pacific, we also note more gains in the IPOX® China (CNI: +4.75%) and IPOX® Japan (IPJP: +2.97%). Ahead of the start of the FIFA World Cup, profit taking and secondary issuing activity weighted on the IPOX® MENA (IPEV: -2.51%) In the U.S., the large-cap heavy and super-liquid IPOX® Growth Infusion (GNDX) gained +2.86% to -7.22% YTD, beating the S&P 500 (SPX) by +817 bps. this year. 
IPOX® PORTFOLIO HOLDINGS IN FOCUS: Amid positive sentiment in the technology sector, leaders in the IPOX® 100 U.S. (ETF: FPX) included software firms Sprout Social (SPT US: +43.96%) and Gitlab (GTLB US: +24.20%). After beating earnings estimates, renewable energy firm Sunrun (RUN US: +26.83%) was among our top holdings for the second week in a row. On the opposite end, weak earnings weighted on demand manufacturing firm Xometry (XMTR US: -25.10%) and insurance firm Ryan Specialty (RYAN US: -23.57%). Abroad, Israeli solar panel firm Solaredge (SEDG US: +31.92%) led the IPOX® Europe (ETF: FPXE) as well as the IPOX® International (ETF: FPXI) after reporting record earnings. Vodafone tower unit Vantage Towers (VTWR GR: +15.36%) surged on takeover news, while Finnish EV charging solutions provider 12/2021 IPO Kempower (KEMPOWR FH: +11.22%) extended the YTD gain to +109% to reach a fresh weekly all-time post-IPO high.
GLOBAL IPO DEAL FLOW REVIEW AND OUTLOOK: 10 sizable IPO started trading internationally last week, gaining +16.41% based on the difference between the final offer price and Friday’s close. Thai beauty clinic operator Klinique (KLINIQ TB: +75.51%) and Saudi oil firm Arabian Drilling (ARABIAND AB: +28.80%) surged after commencing trading on Monday. Indonesian IPOs of e-commerce app Blibli (BELI IJ: +7.56%), disposable medical device manufacturer OneMed (OMED IJ: +23.53%) and palm oil firm Citra Borneo Utama (CBUT IJ: +24.64%) all gained. Across China-linked and domiciled firms, 4 companies launched: Medical devices spin-off LEPU ScienTech Medical (2291 HK: -2.57%), clothing maker Zibuyu (2420 HK: +5.47%) and marketing firm Many Idea Cloud (6696 HK: -9.18%) started trading in Hong Kong, while Shanghai-based hotel chain Atour (ATAT US: +17.09%) went public on Nasdaq. Scotland-based oil & gas firm Ithaca Energy (ITH LN: -6.80%) returned to the London Stock Exchange after the acquisition by Israel’s Delek Group took the firm private in 2017 and disappointed investors after pricing at the bottom of the book building range.
At least 5 firms are expected to go public this week. Monday: Swiss GDR sale of China-listed EV battery firm Sunwoda (SWD SW/300207 CH: $440m) and South Korean engineering firm Yunsung F&C (372170 KS: $68m). Tuesday: Swiss GDR sale of China-listed tool maker GreatStar (GSI SW/002444 CH: $155m), Japanese food subscription box company Base Food (2936 JP: $35m) and Dubai district cooling firm Empower (EMPOWER UH: $724m – upsized from $543m).
Other news: 1) German ISP United Internet picks banks for IPO of web hosting unit Ionos, seeking a $4.1B market capitalization. 2) Softbank says Arm IPO unlikely to happen by March 2023. 3) Renault plans 2023 Paris IPO for EV unit Ampere at $10B valuation. 4) Israeli “smart glass” maker Gauzy plans to raise $150m in Nasdaq IPO. 5) Thai supermarket chain Big C plans to raise $500m in Bangkok IPO. 6) Turkish Airlines to spin off low-cost airline Anadolujet. 7) Softbank-owned private equity firm Fortress to buy Japanese department store Sogo for over $1.4B. 8) UK retailer Next buys collapsed furniture retailer Made.com. 9) IPOX® International (ETF: FPXI) holding, Thailand’s power producer Gulf Energy (GULF TB) to buy satellite operator Thaicom (THCOM TB) for $292m. 10) IPOX® Europe (ETF: FPXE) and IPOX® International (ETF: FPXI) holding car maker Volvo Car (VOLCARB SS) to sell 33% stake in powertrain firm Aurobay to Geely. 11) IPOX® 100 U.S. (ETF: FPX) holding, cloud software maker Datadog (DDOG US) acquires private cloud visualization service firm Cloudcraft.
THE IPOX® SPAC (SPAC): The Index added +1.93% to -18.86% YTD last week. IPOX® SPAC Leaders recording notable upside/downside moves include space-based cellular broadband network provider AST SpaceMobile (ASTS US: +31.59%) rallying on strong momentum and upcoming business updates whereas wire transfer firm International Money Express (IMXI US: -16.44%) fell after disappointing Q3 numbers. Other SPAC news from last week: 1) 3 SPACs Announced Merger Agreement include NorthView Acquisition (NVAC US: +0.06%) with California-based wearable medical device maker Profusa. 2) 3 SPACs Approved or Completed Business Combination include Vikers Vantage I with commercial biopharma Scilex (SCLX US: +6.62%). 3) 1 SPAC opted to liquidate include Athlon Acquisition (SWET US: $10.06/share). 4) 1 SPAC launched last week in the U.S.
