It a bold turn of course, last week became the busiest week yet for the 2020 initial public offering market (IPO), with 14 new companies raising a combined total of about $8.2 billion. September's market resurgence melted a recent slowdown and paved the way for an even busier second half of the year as Wall Street continues to recover from the coronavirus pandemic.
Last week's largest IPO Snowflake Inc. (NYSE: SNOW) also happened to be both the biggest pricing of the year so far and software debut ever. The cloud software company priced its shares above its already upwardly revised range at $120 each to raise roughly $3.4 million. The company is expected to benefit from business' ongoing shift to cloud-based infrastructure, with investors cashing in to make the stock pop 112% in its first day. However, the pressure from the ongoing tech sell off caused shares to decline, with Snowflake finishing its first week up only 100%.
In another blockbuster deal, Unity Software Inc. (NYSE: U) priced its shares above its previously upwardly revised range at $52 each to raise $1.3 billion in its offering. The popular design platform has powered the creation of over half of the top 1,000 games in Apple's (NASDAQ: AAPL) and Google's (NASDAQ: GOOGL) app stores. The company has also seen strong engagement amid the pandemic due to increased consumer activity in home entertainment. Unity ended its first week up 31%.
Another pandemic favorite, telehealth software company American Well Corp. (NYSE: AMWL), also known as Amwell, upsized and priced its shares above the range at $18 each to raise nearly $742 million in its debut. The company is set to benefit from the increased popularity in telehealth services, as well as predictions that telehealth will become part of typical health care in the future. Amwell finished its first week up 28%.
Rank Group spinoff Pactiv Evergreen (NASDAQ: PTVE) also priced its shares above the range to raise $574 million. The company holds high rankings for 80% of its consumer products, yet the company's volume has weakened in the past few year and it ultimately operated in a largely underperforming sector, leaving the stock to finish its first week down 15%.
The next large offering was brought by the commercial REIT BroadStone Net Lease, Inc. (NYSE: BNL), pricing its shares at the low end of its range at $17 each to raise about $570 million in its debut. The company's portfolio includes over 600 properties within the United States and Canada. Yet, investors were left unimpressed due to the other big names coming to public trade, pushing the stock to end its first week down 1%.
Keeping the trend of blockbuster debuts, JFrog Ltd (NASDAQ: FROG) priced its shares above its upwardly revised range at $44 each to raise an offering of over $509 million. The developments software and IT operations provider has a range of enterprise customers, but the pandemic has harmed its ARR growth and retention. That did not stop investors though, with the stock ending its first week up 47%.
Returning to the cloud, Sumo Logic, Inc. (NASDAQ: SUMO) priced its share above the range at $22 each to raise about $326 million. The cloud management software company has experienced a pattern of strong growth, but remain unprofitable. The did not dissuade investors, with the stock ending its first week up 14%.
Global private markets investment firm StepStone Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: STEP) was next, pricing its share offering above the range at $18 each to raise $315 million. As of June 30, 2020, the company has overseen $292 billion private markets allocations, but its operations have been harmed by the pandemic. The stock was damaged by the week's market volatility, finishing down 39%.
Making a splash for the health care sector, newcomer Outset Medical, Inc. (NASDAQ: OM) upsized and priced its shares above the range at $27 each to raise about $242 million in its offering. The medical device maker has recently received U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval for its lead candidate to be used at home, which can lead to more growth opportunity. Investors were impressed, pushing the stock up 122% in its first week.
Rare disease biotech Dyne Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: DYN) priced its upsized offering above the range at $19 each to raise roughly $233 million. The company's lead candidate is currently in early stage clinical trials, with results expected by 2022. The stock ended its first week up 19%.
Alzheimers biotech Athira Pharma, Inc. (NASDAQ: ATHA) also upsized its offering, pricing shares at the high end of its range at $17 each to raise $204 million. The company's lead candidate has shown to be well tolerated in a Phase I clinical trial, with the company set to potentially push as Phase II/III trial by the end of the year. The stock ended up 1%.
Mood disorder biotech COMPASS Pathways plc (NASDAQ: CMPS) continued to the trend of pricing its upsized offering above the range at $17 each to raise $128 million in debut. The company's lead candidate is currently in a Phase II clinical trial, with the biotech studying the use of psilocybin to treat depression. The stock ended up 71%.
After its initial delay, Virtu Ltd (NASDAQ: VTRU) priced its shares at the low end at $16 each for its downwardly revised offering to raise $96 million. The Brazilian digital education provider is expected to benefit from the ongoing shift to distance learning, but long term may face some decline after the pandemic. The stock finished the week flat.
NASH biotech Metacrine, Inc. (NASDAQ: MTCR) priced its shares at the midpoint of its range at $13 each to raise just over $85 million. The company's lead candidate is slated to begin a Phase II combination trial during the first half of 2021, with data expected to be produced by the second half of 2022. Investors left this biotech relatively alone, with the stock ending its first week down 22%.