The U.S. initial public offering market experienced a boom in 2020 that has so far carried over into 2021 as well. There were a record 407 IPO stocks last year, more than double the 195 new listings in 2019. Collectively, those 407 companies raised a total of $195 billion in funding.
In the first quarter of 2021, there were more than 100 more IPOs that collectively raised $32.9 billion, according to Renaissance Capital.
In May, the most high-profile listing was website maker Squarespace (ticker: SQSP). The company’s debut was technically a direct listing rather than a traditional IPO, but the stock began trading for the first time on May 19. So far, Squarespace’s price is up nearly 17%.
Investors are looking for the IPO boom to continue in June and beyond. Here are five IPOs to watch:
— dLocal (DLO)
— Krispy Kreme (DNUT)
— Authentic Brands
— Couchbase
— Robinhood
[SEE: 7 Best ETFs for Value Investors.]
dLocal (DLO)
Payments company dLocal is part of a wave of digital payments companies hitting the public markets. Paymentus Holdings (PAY) and Flywire Corp. (FLYW) completed IPOs in late May. Marqeta (MQ) has also filed to go public next week.
Founded in 2016, dLocal provides a cross-border payments platform that connects more than 330 merchants to billions of customers in emerging markets. The company earns processing fees on each transaction.
In its IPO filings, dLocal reported $104.1 million in revenue in 2020, up 89% from 2019. It also reported about $28.2 million in profits last year, a stark contrast to many IPO growth stocks that are experiencing heavy losses.
Shares began trading on the Nasdaq on June 3. The payment company set an IPO price of $21 and raised about $617.7 million, opening at $31 per share.
Krispy Kreme (DNUT)
On May 4, doughnut maker Krispy Kreme announced that it confidentially filed paperwork to complete an IPO. Krispy Kreme is looking to take another crack at life on the public market after its previous IPO back in 2000 ultimately resulted in a Chapter 11 bankruptcy just five years later.
Before the pandemic, Krispy Kreme reportedly generated $887 million in sales in 2019, up 10.1%. The company was valued at $1.35 billion back in 2016 when it was purchased by privately owned JAB Holding Co.
Investors certainly hope Krispy Kreme’s value has grown since 2016. Competitor Dunkin’ Brands was taken private in 2020 in an $8.76 billion deal.
Krispy Kreme now operates more than 1,400 shops in 33 different countries and sells snacks in 12,000 U.S. grocery and convenience stores. The company has not yet announced a potential IPO date, but the recent filing suggests its listing date could come before the end of June.
[Read: 5 Tactical Investing Methods for Advisors.]
Authentic Brands
Authentic Brands is a brand management firm that has been buying up popular retail brands that were forced into bankruptcy in recent years. Authentic Brands has partnered with shopping mall operators Simon Property Group ( SPG) and Brookfield Property Partners ( BPY) to acquire Aeropostale, Brooks Brothers, Forever 21 and other retailers. The company also owns Barneys New York, Lucky Brands and Juicy Couture.
On May 26, Women’s Wear Daily reported that Authentic Brands has filed confidentially for an IPO and is targeting a $10 billion valuation. The report seems to corroborate an earlier Bloomberg story suggesting Authentic Brands is exploring the possibility of an IPO.
Sources say Authentic Brands is targeting a late-July listing. However, investors should be on the lookout for additional updates in the coming weeks given details are so scarce at this point.
Authentic Brands was valued at between $4 billion and $5 billion during its most recent fundraising round in 2019, according to CNBC.
Couchbase
Couchbase is a database software company that investors have been eyeing since Reuters reported the company filed for its IPO back on March 11. Couchbase has yet to pull the trigger on a listing, but it could easily be the next billion-dollar tech IPO.
Couchbase could be valued at up to $3 billion, according to sources familiar with the matter. The company reportedly generates more than $100 million in annual revenue from its high-profile customer base, which includes Cisco Systems ( CSCO), Intuit ( INTU) and PayPal Holdings ( PYPL).
Some investors likely see parallels between Couchbase and database solutions software company Snowflake ( SNOW), which went public in September 2020. In roughly eight months, Snowflake shares are up more than 100% from their $120 IPO price.
Couchbase has been considering an IPO since way back in 2016. Lately, the company has gone silent about its upcoming IPO, but the March filing suggests an official announcement could come at any time.
Robinhood
Another high-profile tech company that has been teasing investors with a massive IPO is commission-free trading app Robinhood.
Robinhood’s past couple of years have been extremely successful but have also been plagued by controversy. CEO Vlad Tenev was recently called to testify in front of Congress after Robinhood temporarily restricted trading in GameStop Corp. ( GME) and other so-called “meme” stocks associated with targeted short squeezes orchestrated by the Reddit WallStreetBets community.
[See: 8 Best Monthly Dividend Stocks to Buy Now.]
In his testimony, Tenev said Robinhood has more than 13 million customers. A retail stock trading boom drove explosive growth for Robinhood in 2020 and early 2021. The company’s payment for order flow revenue increased from roughly $90 million in the first quarter of 2020 to around $220 million by the fourth quarter, according to TechCrunch.
People familiar with the matter suggest Robinhood’s IPO could value the company in the $30 billion range. Robinhood filed its IPO paperwork back on March 23, suggesting an official update on a potential listing date could come at any time.
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5 IPO Stocks to Watch in June originally appeared on usnews.com
Update 06/04/21: This story was published at an earlier date and has been updated with new information.
