Barron's: The Disappearing IPO Market

The cover story in this weekend's Barron's takes a look at what this year's lull in initial public offerings may portend.

• The issue also includes a special report on the top women financial advisors in America and the hurdles they face.
• Another special report includes an upset at the top of the latest Barron's ranking of the most respected companies.

Only a few companies have come public so far this year, according to this week's Barron's cover story, and none of them are from Silicon Valley. See why Barron's believes that may bode well for the stock market, and why some unicorns "will never get out of the barn."

"Where Have All the IPOs Gone?" by Alexander Eule points out there hasn't been an initial public offering for a Silicon Valley–based tech company in seven months. Rising regulatory burdens have combined with a surplus of venture capital to make new stock offerings passé. Check it out to see why that may be good news for investors.

"The lack of IPOs when stock indices are near their record highs is unprecedented," says one IPO expert quoted in the article. In the first five months into the year, only 31 companies have gone public in the United States, compared with 69 in the same period of last year and 115 over the first five months of 2014. But that same expert says that, historically, a scarcity of IPOs is a bullish sign for the market.

See how a confluence of events has contributed to the current IPO lull and how there are many factors at play. Where are venture capital firms cashing in as IPOs fade? What effects are the timing of the Federal Reserve interest rate hikes and the U.S. election having? See why mutual funds are taking sizable stakes in unicorns, as well as how the IPO process has changed over the years.

As one report quoted in the article puts it: "The line between public and private is becoming increasingly arbitrary."

The article includes a graphic representation of how the historical relationship between IPO activity and stock market activity, as well as venture capital investments and IPO proceeds, have changed in the past couple of decades.

See also: Barron's Picks And Pans: Whole Foods, Oaktree Capital, Cabela's And More

Other Feature Stories

A special report presents the latest Barron's ranking of the 100 top women financial advisors in America, while a companion article discusses some of the hurdles faced by female advisors in the industry. Another special report includes the latest Barron's list of the most respected companies. See why Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), which topped the list again last year, now has fallen to third place.

In addition, see what Barron's feels are the prospects for Whole Foods Market, Inc. (NASDAQ: WFM) and its new 365 format, alternative asset manager Oaktree Capital Group LLC (NYSE: OAK), Cabelas Inc (NYSE: CAB) under pressure from an activist investor, and publisher Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Co (NASDAQ: HMHC) in the long term.

At the time of this writing, the author had no position in the mentioned equities.

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