The IPO calendar is still seeing sparks of activity, even as the US government shutdown drags on.
The week’s two major deals both got done. Commercial laundry company Alliance Laundry (NYSE: ALH) and Apollo-backed university operator Phoenix Education (NYSE: PXED) both came to market at solid discounts to their public peers, and traded up +13-14%. Not the most exciting deals, but a bright spot given the dim returns from LBOs this year.
Alliance and Phoenix received SEC clearance before the shutdown, but others will now need to get creative, and we’re already seeing that in action.
Schizophrenia biotech MapLight Therapeutics (Nasdaq: MPLT) launched its $251 million IPO this week, opting to go public via the rarely-used Section 8(a) of the Securities Act. That allows it to price at the filed terms after 20 days, lining up a late October listing.
While this option may work for a biotech (like recent filers Evommune or BillionToOne), for most companies it’s nearly impossible for bankers to lock in IPO terms and then wait three weeks to price.
In response, the SEC just released new guidance that makes it easier to go public: Companies still have to wait 20 days, but can launch with a range and price outside the range. This should open up the deal calendar over the next month, even if the lack of SEC review keeps the long-term IPO pipeline frozen for now.
The IPO Index slipped -1.0%, outperforming the S&P 500’s -2.4% loss. Stocks climbed higher for much of the week, until the threat of new tariffs on Friday sent markets tumbling. Web design platform Figma led the winners by a solid margin, gaining +15.1% after its tech was included in a demo by OpenAI’s Sam Altman. Embattled energy play Venture Global plummeted -32.3% after losing an arbitration dispute with BP.
The Renaissance IPO Index returned -1.0% last week vs. -2.4% for the S&P 500.