Here’s Who Has Gone Public In 2019 (So Far)

Welcome to our regularly-updated look at tech, tech-ish, and other venture-backed IPOs that took place on US exchanges in 2019. This post is mostly comprised of technology companies. However, at our own discretion, we’ve excluded some firms and included more health-focused tech than other publication might allow. IPO dates largely refer to the day a company priced (sold) its IPO shares. Valuation data unless otherwise noted via Crunchbase.

Last updated September 18, 2019.

Cloudflare

• IPO date: September 13, 2019
• IPO price: $15 per share
• IPO valuation: $4.4 billion
• Initial post-IPO arc: Positive.

Cloudflare finally settled on pricing its shares at $15 after previously setting ranges of $10 to $12 and then $12 to $14. Its IPO was a success, with its stock opening at $18 on its first day of trading. Things are still going strong, with its stock trading at $19.34 as of midday September 18.

SmileDirectClub

• IPO date: September 12, 2019
• IPO price: $23 per share
• IPO valuation: $8.9 billion
• Initial post-IPO arc: Down.

DIY teeth straightening company SmileDirectClub set its IPO price at $23, above the price range of $19 to $22 the company had intended. But pricing high has its consequences, and nearly a week after beginning trading on the public markets, SmileDirectClub’s stock still hasn’t hit $23. Its shares closed at $16.67 on its first day of trading, and is at $19.07 as of midday September 17.

9F

• IPO date: August 15, 2019
• IPO price: $9.50 per share
• IPO valuation: $2.1 billion
• Initial post-IPO arc: Modestly positive.

Chinese financial services and tech company 9F priced at the high end of its range of $7.50 to $9.50 per share. We wrote about the company’s financials right before it went public, and since hitting the Nasdaq, 9F’s stock price has risen a bit to $11.29, as of midday Aug. 28.

InMode

• IPO date: August 8, 2019
• IPO price: $14 per share
• IPO valuation: $447 million
• Initial post-IPO arc: Slow start, but good short-term returns.

InMode’s stock stayed relatively flat around $14 for about a week after it began trading on the Nasdaq. But its stock saw a jump around Aug. 14 and was trading at $21.60 as of midday Aug. 28.

Dynatrace

• IPO date: Juy 31, 2019
• IPO price: $16 per share
• IPO valuation: $4.5 billion
• Initial post-IPO arc: Unknown.

Dynatrace priced above its raised $13 to $15 per-share IPO price range after initially targeting an $11 to $13 range. How it will fare isn’t clear, though early signals look promising. The company is just set to trade. We’ll have more the next time we update this post.

Health Catalyst

• IPO date: July 24, 2019
• IPO price: $26 per share
• IPO valuation: $1.3 billion
• Initial post-IPO arc: Sharply higher.

Crunchbase News covered Health Catalyst when it raised $100 million earlier this year, but not during its IPO run. We can only do so much.

What matters is that the company which focuses on health data was one more feather in the cap of healthtech. Since going public at $26 per share, Health Catalyst’s equity has risen to more than $40 per share. It’s been a fantastic year for health-focused tech companies to go public.

Livongo

• IPO date: July 25, 2019
• IPO price: $28 per share
• IPO valuation: $2.5 billion
• Initial post-IPO arc: Sharply higher.

Yet another 2019 healthtech offering, we described the company’s financials as having “quick revenue growth” along with “growing losses” when we first saw the figures.

Whatever we called the numbers, investors like them. And after a period of time prepping its launch, Livongo’s equity has traded higher as a public company. It’s worth about $44 per share as we write to you. That’s a good margin higher than its IPO price of $28.

Medallia

• IPO date: July 18, 2019
• IPO price: $21 per share
• IPO valuation: $2.5 billion
• Initial post-IPO arc: Sharply higher.

Medallia, not Medallica as we kept typing, has landed on its feet in the public markets. After going public in mid-July for $21 per share, equity in Medallia rose in value to about $40 as I update this post to include the company’s results. That’s a nice post-IPO appreciation.

A customer experience venture, Medallia raised through Series F while private, making this IPO somewhat important from a venture-returns perspective. Sequoia was a key backer of the company while private.

We covered its S-1 debut, its pricing here and here, and its initial, strong results.

Phreesia

• IPO date: July 8, 2019
• IPO price: $17 per share
• IPO valuation: $600 million
• Initial post-IPO arc: Up.

Phreesia’s modestly-sized healthtech IPO (the company provides check-in services on tables for medial settings) wasn’t a big deal in Silicon Valley. But that doesn’t mean that the company wasn’t interesting enough for us to track. You can check our notes on the company here, and here.

What Phreesia’s IPO details is a market hungry for growth; even smaller offerings can find a warm reception in 2019. Phreesia is worth $10 more per share today compared to its IPO price. Not bad.

DouYu

• IPO date: July 7, 2019
• IPO price: $11.50 per share
• IPO valuation: $3.8 billion
• Initial post-IPO arc: Down.

We were amped for DouYu’s IPO. After all, a similar offering in 2018 from Huya, another China-based esports company, had done well. Whatever magic Huya had, however, DouYu did not receive the same.

Indeed, the company’s value has fallen since its debut, an offering that priced at the bottom of the company’s $11.50 to $14 per-share price range. Bottom, and then lower. Not a great way to start life as a public company.

The RealReal

• IPO date: June 28, 2019
• IPO price: $20 per share
• IPO valuation: $1.7 billion
• Initial post-IPO arc: Up.

The RealReal is currently worth $26.23, far above its $20 per-share IPO price. Given that the firm had initially targeted a $17 to $19 per-share IPO price, it’s good news all the way down. For more, head here and here.

Change Healthcare

• IPO date: June 27, 2019
• IPO price: $13 per share
• IPO valuation: $1.5 billion
• Initial post-IPO arc: Change started life above its IPO price, but is still worth less than what it had initially hoped to be when it first gave pricing hints.

With under $60 million in private capital attached to Change before it went public, the company had big shoes to fill. However the firm’s $13 per-share IPO price was far below its proposed 4160 to $19 per-share range. As such, yes, the firm is up from $13, but down from where it had hoped to price. At least the firm seems to have been priced fairly in its debut.

Cambium Networks

• IPO date: June 26, 2019
• IPO price: $12 per share
• IPO valuation: $307 million
• Initial post-IPO arc: Down.

In post-IPO coverage, Cambium Networks managed to scare up the following headline: “Cambium Networks: Rightfully Disappointing IPO.” Damn.

Now worth just $9.30, this is a rare 2019 IPO letdown.

Slack

• IPO date: June 20, 2019
• Reference price: $26 per share
• IPO valuation: $15.7 billion
• Initial post-IPO arc: Slack started high, and has kept altitude between it and its reference price.

Slack, have you heard of it? Did you know that the workplace productivity company pursued a direct listing instead of a traditional IPO? I bet have heard of it, and did know the rest.

Still, Slack fits our model and thus joins our list. The company is now richly valued, and public. Take that, direct listing haters.

Chewy

• IPO date: June 14, 2019
• IPO price: $22 per share
• IPO valuation: $8.8 billion
• Initial post-IPO arc: Sharply higher, rendering all pets.com jokes moot. For now.

Sure, Chewy doesn’t make money. Sure, it has negative historical precedent. But none of that mattered when the company went public. Now worth $34.21, Chewy is yet another strong debut in 2019.

Given that the firm was previously acquired for $3.4 billion, its new worth is a treat to backers. And, if you got in at the IPO price (I doubt that you did), you are doing well.

Fiverr

• IPO date: June 13, 2019
• IPO price: $21 per share
• IPO valuation: $800 million
• Initial post-IPO arc: Sharoly higher, followed by some steam-blowing-off.

If you didn’t expect Fiverr to go public at all, that it’s done well since debuting must be quite the trip. The gig workplace company is worth $27.30 today, sharply above its IPO price. And when you look back at its share price chart, the firm was worth more than $30 not too long ago.

Not bad for a company you mostly remember for its odd advertising.

CrowdStrike Holdings

• IPO date: June 12, 2019
• IPO price: $34 per share
• IPO valuation: $6.6 billion
• Initial post-IPO arc: Way, way, way up.

We wrote a bit about CrowdStrike on its road to going public. Here’s our first piece after it filed, and here’s some more, some more, and more.

CrowdStrike had a good IPO, raised a lot of money, and has since grown in value. But it’s that final point that is driving controversy. Indeed, some VCs are complaining that many companies are going out underpriced, effectively leaving money on the table. Yes, we’ve had this argument before. No, it won’t ever stop.

Luckin Coffee

• IPO date: May 16, 2019
• IPO price: $17 per share
• IPO valuation: $5 billion
• Initial post-IPO arc: Akin to pouring hot coffee on your lap, this bad boy jumped when it hit the market.

Let May 16th last in our memory as the day that proved just how open the IPO window was in 2019. The very same IPO window that Uber and Lyft tripped while crossing.

Luckin at its IPO was a company with shocking losses, a model that was far, far from proven, and more. And its shares ran sharply higher in its first day of trading. Why? Growth, of course. Luckin has lots of it, and the public market loved it. Uber had all but none in quarters leading up to its own IPO, and it showed when the results were tabulated.

Of course, Luckin has a lot to prove. But at least its start on the American markets was solid.

Fastly

• IPO date: May 16, 2019
• IPO price: $16 per share
• IPO valuation: $1.5 billion
• Initial post-IPO arc: Huge first day, lots of bang for this quiet-ish SaaS-y CDN.

In the shuddering wake of the Uber IPO, the Fastly debut managed to light up the markets, shooting higher in its first day of trading. Even a weak market couldn’t slow the firm down.

So, our question regarding how to price the company was answered twice. First, when Fastly priced at the top of its range, and, second, when the market decided that it was worth quite a bit more than that. Fastly, welcome to the public markets. (We also caught up with its founder on IPO day, our notes from which can be found here.)

 Uber

• IPO date: May 10, 2019
• IPO price: $45 per share
• IPO valuation: $82.4 billion
• Initial post-IPO arc: Down, and then further down.

The Uber IPO was a massive event in both Silicon Valley and Wall Street. The ensuing selloff made dents on both coasts, as shares of Uber slipped after their IPO during their initial trading session. The following session they fell even further.

Uber’s declines are a setback for the firm, yes, but also ding the idea that losses are pretty much ok so long as a company can appoint itself in the garb of a growth company. Uber’s combined slowing growth and persistent losses were too much for public investors to agree to at its IPO price.

Lyft fell during the same period, repricing a large chunk of the global ride-hailing market.

Beyond Meat

• IPO date: May 2, 2019
• IPO price: $25 per share
• IPO valuation: $1.5 billion
• Initial post-IPO arc: To infinity, and beyond!

The Beyond Meat IPO was a smashing early success. The post-meat firm quickly tripled its value, making its sector hotter than a vegan burger on a grill. However, as we wrote previously, the firm is trading dangerously high above its fundamentals?

Beyond Meat is currently worth $4.0 billion, a slight uptick from its first-day performance. That gives it a 227.6x multiple on its 2018 gross profit. That figure is slightly exaggerated by the fact that the company has low gross margins (about 20 percent in 2018), making its gross profit multiple more dramatic than you might presume from a flat revenue multiple.

So expect this one to grow like hell, and keep its valuation, or see it repriced to something a bit saner. Either way, a big win for the meatless shop. (And its sector!)

Yunji

• IPO date: May 3, 2019
• IPO price: $11 per share
• IPO valuation: $2.4 billion
• Initial post-IPO arc: Up from bottom-level pricing, but not enough to make headlines.

This IPO was a bit quiet in terms of U.S. media attention, but it was the successful flotation of another China-based unicorn on the domestic markets. More from Crunchbase News here.

Pinterest

• IPO date: April 18, 2019
• IPO price: $19 per share
• IPO valuation: $10 billion (CNBC figure)
• Initial post-IPO arc: Big and good.

The Pinterest IPO pricing was somewhat of a letdown for folks hoping that it would price up from its final private price. But then Pinterest’s stock went ahead and climbed. So now it’s worth more. Indeed, as I write this, it’s worth over $15 billion. So there, naysayers.

Pinterest going public was the end of a very long saga, but one that closed on an up-note for the company.

Zoom

• IPO date: April 18, 2019
• IPO price: $36 per share
• IPO valuation: $9.2 billion
• Initial post-IPO arc: It went kaboom. In a good way.

The dark horse of 2019 IPOs, Zoom stormed the media with its epic S-1, and then kicked butt after going public. (At least initially, we cannot see the future.) Today worth around $20 billion according to Google Finance, Zoom is the breakout success story of the year thus far.

Pro tip: Make money while growing quickly, and everyone will talk about you.

PagerDuty

• IPO date: April 12, 2019
• IPO price: $24 per share
• IPO valuation: $1.8 billion (TradingView metric)
• Initial post-IPO arc: Strong market response.

The PagerDuty IPO put points on the board for the world of B2B SaaS, a huge startup category and the fount of many a hopeful venture return. The huge initial success of PagerDuty’s IPO underscored the market’s willingness, in April at least, to snap up SaaS shares despite pressure on companies like Box and Dropbox in the months leading up to its debut.

PagerDuty is unprofitable, but has incredibly high-value revenue (recurring, high gross margin). That fact was likely helpful during its IPO process. 

Read our look at its S-1 here, and the rest here.

Lyft

• IPO date: March 29, 2019
• IPO price: $72 per share
• IPO valuation: $24 billion
• Initial post-IPO arc: Exuberance, followed by declines and a massive hangover.

The Lyft IPO marked the start of the unicorn IPO run of 2019. Beating Uber to the public market, Lyft had big growth, and towering losses to match. Its pricing run was strong, and the company priced at the top of its raised range. And then, Lyft opened up more than $10 over its IPO price.

All things looked good. But then Lyft’s stock began to drift down. Quickly falling under its IPO price, Lyft wasn’t helped by the public launch of Uber’s IPO, the expected price of which may have pressured Lyft’s stock even more. As of the time of writing, Lyft is worth only a billion dollars more than its final private price.

Read our look at its S-1 here, and the rest here.

Super League Gaming

Super League Gaming, an esports company, went public on Feb. 26, 2019. The company, according to its S-1, sports a “proprietary cloud-based platform [which] provides amateur gamers a modernized way to connect, play and view games in real-time.” Per VentureBeat’s excellent games coverage, in practice, that means that the company “holds local competitions for games like Minecraft and League of Legends in theaters, cafes” and other locations.

We all know by now that Twitch and esports are big deals. However, the new offering went out at $11 per share before falling under $10 during its first day’s trading. Super League Gaming raised around $25 million in its debut.

Why did its shares fall right out of the gate? The company has a slim $1.05 million in revenue during calendar 2018. That was up from just over $200,000 in 2017. However, the company lost a staggering $20.6 million in 2018. That’s one of the worst net margins I’ve ever seen.

Super League Gaming, then, is a growth play and an early IPO. Most companies stay private when they are this unprofitable. It will be interesting to see how the market values the small esports shop moving forward.

Notes

To qualify for this list, a company must list on a United States-based exchange, must report at least $1 of revenue in the past year, and be a member of the larger tech community.

For historical coverage, check out our tally of US-listed tech IPOs from 2018.