Overview
There were 44 initial public offerings in U.S. markets between October 1, 2015 and December 31, 2015, representing a decrease of 45% from the same period last year when there were 80 IPOs. The total amount raised this quarter was $7.9 billion, well below the $17 billion raised last year but roughly proportional to the decrease in the total number of IPOs.
All told, there were 204 U.S. IPOs in 2015, raising over $38 billion. For comparison, 2014 saw over $90 billion raised, and 2013 IPOs raised $66 billion.
Industry Analysis
Pharmaceuticals (NAICS 325412) and Biological Products (325414) led the way all year, with 47 and 14 IPOs, respectively. Pharmaceutical companies raised about 10% of the total for the year ($3.6 billion), and Biological Products raised $1.3 billion.
Auditor Market Share
As usual, the Big Four tended to dominate the IPO market.
Auditor market share for 44 #IPOs in Q4 2015: EY (36%), KPMG (14%), PwC (11%), Deloitte (9%), Marcum (7%), Grant (5%), others (18%).
— Audit Analytics (@AuditAnalytics) February 1, 2016
EY maintained its apparent stronghold on the market with the most clients among 2015 IPOs. Marcum LLP made a strong showing this year, with about 6% market share in US IPO companies. The top 100 firm also won the most new SEC clients in Q4 2015.
Auditor market share for 204 #IPOs in 2015: EY (26%), KPMG (16%), PwC (13%), Deloitte (13%), Marcum (6%), Grant (4%), others (22%). — Audit Analytics (@AuditAnalytics) February 1, 2016
Altogether, the Big Four firms had about 68% market share for 2015 IPOs.
Emerging Growth Companies
187 of the 204 IPO companies, or 92%, elected to register as Emerging Growth Companies. That’s a marked increase over last year, when about 83% of IPO companies registered as EGCs.
All in all, it was a bit of a down year for IPOs. Activity in 2015 slowed compared to last year, but regulatory changes such as the Emerging Growth Companies designation do appear to be facilitating the raising of new capital.