The 10 most anticipated IPOs in 2023
After a fairly busy 2021, the IPO market has largely dried up over the past 12 months. Proceeds from initial public offerings this year were down 93% as of the end of November, according to the president of the New York Stock Exchange.
But 2023 could see that drought come to an end.
Volatility, which caused a lot of companies to hit the pause button on their publicly traded debut in 2022, is still a concern, but heads of major exchanges say they expect the backlog to begin to break next year, especially in the back half.
On the Nasdaq exchange alone, there are roughly 200 companies waiting to go public. The NYSE has not provided an estimate of its pending additions. But regardless of where they make their debut, some IPOs are more anticipated than the rest. Here’s a look at the companies that market watchers are keeping their eye on for 2023.
Stripe
Arguably the most watched upcoming IPO of the year (for the second year in a row), Stripe saw its valuation hit $95 billion after its last funding round picked up $600 million in early 2021. Some investors believed that the payment services company could be one of the biggest public offerings of all time. In July, Stripe cut its valuation down to $74 billion to reflect shifting market sentiment, and it has cut 14% of its workforce this year. That’s not quelling investor excitement, though. And once things settle down with tech stocks, this could be the IPO to beat.
The social media giant has been sitting on the sidelines waiting for the right time to jump into the market for the better part of a year now, but many market watchers believe it will make the plunge in 2023. It filed for an IPO in December 2021, listing a valuation of up to $15 billion, and was expected to go public in March—but then the market chop happened. Fidelity cut the estimated value of its stake in Reddit by one-third in May, and the great wait was extended. (Fidelity backed off of the dire notes the following month, increasing the estimated value of its share by 6.5%.) A public offering is still in the works—late 2023 seems a likely target.
Instacart
Like Reddit, Instacart felt the sting of a Fidelity valuation cut last May, a reflection of both the tech market and the shrinking post-pandemic demand for its services. But with a current valuation of $24 billion, it’s still likely to move forward with its IPO plans. In 2021, it had put those plans on pause to broaden its business. Two years seems a sufficient amount of time to do so, assuming the market stabilizes.
Discord
While Discord hasn’t announced plans to go public, the company’s decision in 2021 to end talks with Microsoft over a $10 billion takeover certainly points to a planned IPO. The company had a $15 billion valuation at the end of 2021, but Fidelity marked it down 32% in June as tech stocks continued to suffer. The communication tool that’s a gamer favorite has seen a surge in users lately (up to 150 million monthly active users) and recently launched paid server subscriptions for content creators (and the company) to make money.
Impossible Foods
The plant-based meat company’s popularity has waned as the novelty of a plant burger that tastes close to beef wears off, but it still boasts a valuation of $10 billion. The growth numbers will be key to watch for those waiting for its long-awaited IPO. Competitor Beyond Meat is already publicly traded, and investors have been whispering about an Impossible IPO since 2021. But given the rapid fall of Beyond Meat, executives are likely waiting for markets to settle down and to build a solid financial track record before they file their S-1 with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
TripActions
The pandemic was almost fatal for this platform that manages travel and expenses for businesses using machine learning and artificial intelligence, but the rebound in the travel industry has led to a strong comeback. So strong, in fact, that TripActions has been on an acquisition binge of late, buying travel management companies. In September 2022 it filed for an IPO with a $12 billion valuation, but it did not give a timeline for going public.
ServiceTitan
Like many potential 2023 IPOs, ServiceTitan originally was expected to make the jump in 2022. The company initially filed to go public in January, but hasn’t taken any action since then. The software company for service industries like HVAC and plumbing, which helps with dispatching, marketing, payroll and more, was last valued at $9.5 billion in June 2021.
Mobileye
Intel announced plans to take this Israeli autonomous driving firm public last December. The plan was to do so by the middle of this year, but . . . well, plans change. Founded in Jerusalem by Amnon Shashua and Ziv Aviram in 1999, Mobileye is one of Israel’s biggest tech success stories, and the company could be valued at more than $50 billion, per some reports. Intel’s CEO told CNBC that the division’s sales have tripled since Intel took it over, with nearly $1 billion in revenue last year.
Turo
The car-sharing company was the first to announce its intentions to go public in 2022, but it pumped the brakes some as markets ebbed and flowed. The company has continued to disclose financials, however, indicating the IPO is still in the works.
Savers/Value Village
As consumers look to save money, this chain of thrift stores has seen its business jump. It’s the largest for-profit thrift store operator in the U.S. and Canada with more than 300 stores. While it filed for its IPO in 2021, it hasn’t pulled the trigger yet. (It last updated the filing in May.) At the time of the filing, the company said it believed it could raise $250 million by going public.
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