The IPOX® Week #756
MAG7-free, now the place to be: IPOX® 100 U.S. outpaces Nasdaq Y/Y.
Big gains extend to IPOX® U.S. Climate 100, IPOX® Canada, IPOX® Global.
1/24 IPO Amer Sports in focus ahead of U.S holiday shopping season.
Kindercare surges on debut U.S. Biotech IPO comeback raises $510m last week.
IPOX® 100 U.S. Index: Amid weak U.S. bonds, investor sentiment remained upbeat last week, as corporate earnings reports, particularly from U.S. banks like JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo, came in stronger than expected. This fueled more broad-based market gains, benefiting most of the IPOX® Strategies, continuing their strong momentum amid ongoing positivity across diverse high-growth thematic exposure, including AI, Energy Revolution, Health Care IPO M&A, Speciality Staples and Finance. In the U.S., e.g., the IPOX® 100 U.S. Index (ETF: FPX), benchmark for U.S. IPO performance, climbed +2.05% to +18.80% YTD, outpacing major benchmarks such as the Nasdaq 100 (NDX: +1.19%), S&P 500 (SPX: +1.13%), and Russell 2000 (RTY: +0.99%) anew. The index has now delivered an impressive year-on-year return of +33.66%, continuing to outperform. With its focus on innovative, high-growth companies beyond the tech giants, the IPOX® 100 U.S. Index has become the MAG7-free place to be for investors seeking exposure to broader sectors of innovation. Amongst top index performers last week, Symbotic (SYM US: +25.55%) surged after entering a partnership to implement warehouse automation systems for Walmart Mexico (Walmex), while Rubrik Inc. (RBRK US: +19.13%) rallied after Cisco sold their stake in the cybersecurity firm, reducing market overhang and boosting investor sentiment. Big gains continued for the ESG-aware IPOX® U.S. Climate 100 (IPXT) which extended its gain by +3.31% to a massive +35.40% YTD last week.
GLOBAL IPOX® INDEXES: The IPOX® International Index (ETF: FPXI) and the IPOX® 100 Europe Index (ETF: FPXE) both gained +1.23% and +1.24% respectively, driven by strong performances from key holdings. Top of the list ranked British semiconductor firm ARM Holdings (ARM US: +7.76%) which built on its Momentum in AI, while Finnish Wilson sports equipment and Arc’teryx apparel maker Amer Sports (AS US: +13.65%) gained on strong earnings growth ahead of the start of the U.S. holiday shopping season. Amid our broader North American tech exposure, electronics supply chain player Celestica Inc. (CLS CT: +18.73%), a key component of the IPOX® Canada Opportunities Index (ICDX: +2.80%, 22.97% YTD), also saw a sharp rise due to a new product launch and an analyst price target upgrade.
Amid benchmark-beating gains in our indexes, select segments within Europe and broader China exposure weighed on performance. For example, German defense stocks, such as Hensoldt (HAG GY: -6.22%) and Renk Group (R3NK GY: -12.50%), underperformed amid reports of potential ceasefire talks in Ukraine, while Chinese companies in the IPOX® International Index (ETF: FPXI) faced challenges as stimulus measures from the Chinese government failed to fully stabilize market volatility. This was reflected in the IPOX® China Index (CNI), which dropped -5.91% after surging a massive +23.97% in the previous two weeks, with major contributors like household giant Midea Group (300 HK: -10.79%) and pharma firm Akeso Inc. (9926 HK: -9.66%) declining sharply on profit taking after the big run-up. Still, both our ETF-linked indexes extended strong YTD returns, with the IPOX® International (ETF: FPXI) up +15.26% and IPOX® 100 Europe (ETF: FPXE) gaining +19.50%, comfortably outperforming key European hard-to-beat benchmark STOXX Europe 50 (SX5L: +8.64%).
THE IPOX SPAC INDEX (SPAC): The Index added +0.93% last week to -2.39% YTD. Genetic testing company GeneDX (WGS US: +20.43%) continued to skyrocket as the genome sequencing analytic leader impressed investors with its genomic newborn screening data showcase. Germany cancer immunotherapy biotech Immatics N.V. (IMTX US: -14.00%) fell sharply followed by its discounted secondary offering. No SPACs announced definitive merger targets or completed mergers. 3 new SPACs launched this week in the U.S.
ECM REVIEW AND OUTLOOK: 26 firms debuted last week, raising a total of $1.56 billion, with an average (median) gain of +97.83% (+0.76%) based on the difference between final offer and Friday’s close. The largest IPO belonged to U.S. childhood education provider KinderCare Learning Companies (KLC US), which raised $576 million and posted a strong debut with a +18.42% gain. Moreover, U.S. Healthcare IPOs were a major highlight of the week: Asthma treatment firm Upstream Bio (UPB US: +29.41%) surged after raising $255 million from an upsized offer. Neurology medical device maker Ceribell (CBLL US: +47.06%) raised $180 million, while upsized RNA therapy biotech CAMP4 Therapeutics (CAMP US: -2.55%) fell after raising $75 million. On the back of the recent resurgence of biotech IPOs, IPOX® Research Analyst Dr. Lukas Muehlbauer was interviewed by Reuters to give insights into the sector (Read here).
Internationally, Al Majed for Oud Co. (ALMAJED AB), a Saudi perfume retailer, stood out by raising $188 million and soaring +78.72%, reflecting strong demand in the MENA region’s consumer sector.
Notable sizable IPOs this week include Europe’s largest convenience store chain, Polish firm Zabka Polska (Ticker pending, $1.89b offer), Japanese environmental consultant Nihon Suido (261A JP, $51m) and eyewear maker Intermestic (262A JP, $116m) in Tokyo and cloud SaaS firm Qiniu (2567 HK, $56m) in Hong Kong.
Read the latest IPOX® Update for a summary of last week’s IPO News, including Honeywell spin-off plans, Tokyo Metro’s upcoming $2.35B IPO, AI chipmaker Cerebras IPO delays and more.
Follow our IPO Calendar and social media (e.g. Linkedin) for upcoming IPOs,
updates on our indexes and the latest IPO News.
