WANAN YOSSINGKUM
One company went public this past week, completing the year’s first US IPO.
Georgia-based homebuilder Smith Douglas (SDHC) priced at the high end to raise $162 million at a $1.1 billion market cap. Operating in the Southeastern and Southern US, the company builds and sells single-family homes, catering to first-time home buyers and empty nesters. The company saw solid growth in home sales in 2022, though its business is fairly concentrated, particularly in Atlanta. Smith Douglas climbed 14% on its first day and finished the week there, after trading fairly flat on day two.
There were a few new filings this past week, led by Peruvian healthcare company Auna (AUNA), which filed to raise an estimated $200 million.
| 4 Filings During the Week of January 8th, 2024 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Issuer Business | Deal Size | Sector | Lead Underwriter |
Alto Neuroscience (ANRO) | $100M | Health Care | Jefferies |
| Phase 2 biotech developing biomarker-focused therapies for depression and schizophrenia. | |||
Auna (AUNA) | $200M | Health Care | Morgan Stanley |
| Provides healthcare plans and operates hospitals in Peru, Colombia, and Mexico. | |||
Zhengye Biotechnology (ZYBT) | $20M | Health Care | Tiger Brokers |
| Chinese provider of veterinary vaccines with a focus on livestock. | |||
Love & Health (LLLLU) | $50M | SPAC | EF Hutton |
| Blank check company, formed by Hong Kong-based financial services firm Waton Financial. | |||
The IPO calendar looks quiet for now, although after a recent wave of new filings and updates, a number of large issuers could launch in the short week ahead.
Two recent additions on file for billion-dollar listings could launch after the holiday: Kazakhstani “super-app” provider Kaspi.kz (KSPI), which could raise $1.5 billion, and healthcare services provider BrightSpring Health (BTSG), which could raise $1 billion. Another recent filer, Phase 3 bladder cancer firm CG Oncology (CGON), could also launch.
Several other companies that have been publicly on file for longer have recently updated their prospectuses, raising the prospect of more IPO launches. These include specialty insurer Fortegra (TFG), American Healthcare REIT (AHR), and Chinese EV brand ZEEKR (ZK).
Street research is expected for one company in the week ahead, and three lock-up periods will be expiring.
IPO Market Snapshot
The Renaissance IPO Indices are market cap weighted baskets of newly public companies. As of 1/11/2024, the Renaissance IPO Index was down 5.2% year-to-date, while the S&P 500 was up 0.3%. Renaissance Capital’s IPO ETF (IPO) tracks the index, and top ETF holdings include Kenvue (KVUE) and Coinbase Global (COIN). The Renaissance International IPO Index was down 6.0% year-to-date, while the ACWX was down 1.8%. Renaissance Capital’s International IPO ETF (IPOS) tracks the index, and top ETF holdings include Wise and Kuaishou.
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Editor’s Note: The summary bullets for this article were chosen by Seeking Alpha editors.
