These Are The Tech Companies That Went Public in A Blockbuster 2020

This year has been a wild one for the tech initial public offering market (and the world). The COVID-19 pandemic pretty much halted tech IPOs in the spring, and there was speculation that companies that planned to go public in 2020, like Airbnb, would have to wait until 2021. But the market picked back up over the summer, and what had initially looked like it would be a sluggish year for tech IPOs turned into a blockbuster one. High-profile companies like Palantir and DoorDash were among the big names to go public, and 2020 also saw the largest software IPO of all time with Snowflake.

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“The returns and proceeds really highlight what a strong this year was, especially in the second half as tech and biotech bounced back given their demand in the pandemic,” said Matt Kennedy, a senior strategist at IPO research firm Renaissance Capital. “As the pandemic raged across the economy, investors turned to software companies and health care companies.”

Returns of Renaissance Capital’s IPO index “skyrocketed” more than 100 percent, and the number of billion-dollar deals hit a new record, Kennedy said. Low interest rates helped, and even companies outside of the health and tech sectors were well-positioned for a rebound.

“Those two areas—health and technology—(were) the two legs of the IPO market,” Kennedy said. “IPOs proved resilient, which you might not have expected heading into the second quarter, given there was briefly a flight to safety before risk appetites soared again and the demand for growth companies fueled these record return and high valuations.”

The 2021 IPO pipeline also looks robust. Companies like Roblox, Affirm and Poshmark have all publicly filed to go public, while companies such as Coinbase and Bumble have filed confidential S-1 registration statements with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. In short, 2021 is already shaping up to be a busy IPO year, at least in the first couple of months.

Crunchbase News keeps a running list of tech and tech-ish venture-backed companies that have gone public each year, and we look at their initial post-IPO arc. Of course, an initial post-IPO arc only says so much about a company, as things can change over the course of the year. So, we’ve put together another list looking at each company’s public debut and performance by the end(ish) of the year. Let’s dive in.

One Medical

IPO date: Jan. 30, 2020
IPO price: $14
Last private valuation: Between $1.5 billion and $2 billion, according to CNBC
IPO valuation: $1.7 billion
EOY Price: $43.26

One Medical marked 2020’s first venture-backed tech-ish IPO. It saw a fairly large pop on its first day of trading of 58 percent, and while its stock price has dipped here and there, including around the time of the first COVID-19 outbreaks, its overall trend has been positive. Its stock opened at $43.26 on Dec. 23, or 209 percent above its IPO price, and about 96 percent above its closing stock price on its first day of trading.

Casper

IPO date: Feb. 5, 2020
IPO price: $12
Last private valuation: $1.1 billion
IPO valuation: $476 million, excluding underwriters’ options.
EOY Price: $7.48

Casper’s stock has not done well, pretty much from day two. The mattress company dropped its IPO range and slashed its valuation before it began trading back in early February. Its stock opened about 21 percent up on its first day of trading, but has been down pretty much all year. Casper hit a 52-week low of $3.15 back in March, around the time COVID-19 was declared a pandemic, and besides the first day of trading, Casper hasn’t closed out a day of trading at or above its IPO price of $12. The company’s stock performance is arguably the poorest of the tech IPOs this year. It opened at $7.48 on Dec. 23.

Kingsoft Cloud

IPO date: May 8, 2020
IPO price: $17
Last private valuation: Unknown
IPO valuation: $3.7 billion
EOY Price: $44.33

Kingsoft Cloud was the first Chinese company to go public in the United States after China’s Luckin Coffee was tangled in a scandal surrounding its financials. The company saw its stock pop right away, and though it dipped briefly in May, its shares have trended largely positive. The company ends the year with its stock up more than 160 percent above its IPO price.

ZoomInfo

IPO date: June 3, 2020
IPO price: $21
Last private valuation: Unknown
IPO valuation: $8.2 billion
EOY Price: $47.10’

ZoomInfo went public at a time when most U.S.-based tech companies refused to do so. The COVID-19 pandemic essentially put all tech IPOs on pause, but the IPO market picked up again with ZoomInfo. The company’s stock closed around 62 percent above its IPO price on its first day of trading and, while it took a dip in September, it’s still remained above its IPO price all year. ZoomInfo opened at $47.10 on Dec. 23—124 percent above its IPO price.

Vroom

IPO date: June 8, 2020
IPO price: $22
Last private valuation: $1.45 billion
IPO valuation: $2.5 billion
EOY Price: $44.47

Vroom was among the first IPOs over the summer to see its stock more than double on its first day of trading, reigniting the IPO vs direct listing discussion. The company closed out its first day of trading at $47.90, more than double its price, even after it had increased its price range and priced above it. Things went up from there, but have settled back down to around where the company was in June. Vroom’s stock opened at $44.47 on Dec. 23.

Agora

IPO date: June 25, 2020
IPO price: $20
Last private valuation: Unknown
IPO valuation: About $2 billion, according to TechCrunch
EOY price: $43.02

Agora saw its stock price spike on its first day of trading, closing more than 150 percent above its IPO price. It hasn’t kept that momentum since then, though there have been times (like September) when its stock price surged. Agora’s stock opened at $43.02 on Dec. 23.

Lemonade

IPO date: July 2, 2020
IPO price: $29
Last private valuation: $2 billion
IPO valuation: $1.6 billion, excluding underwriters’ options
EOY price: $122.64

Lemonade was the first high-profile insurtech company to go public this year, also around the time when the tech IPO market started to pick up after a COVID-19-induced lull. It immediately saw its stock surge with its trading debut, closing out its first day of trading at $69.41, 139 percent above its IPO price. Its stock price stayed relatively flat until December, when it started steadily climbing. Lemonade opened at $122.64 on Dec. 23.

nCino

IPO date: July 13, 2020
IPO price: $31
Last private valuation: Unknown
IPO valuation: $2.8 billion
EOY price: $82.20

nCino’s stock closed 195 percent above its IPO price on its first day of trading, making it one of the largest “pops” of the year. Its first day closing price came out to $91.59, but its stock has dropped considerably since then, opening at $82.20 on Dec. 23.

Jamf

IPO date: July 21, 2020
IPO price: $26
Last private valuation: Unknown
IPO valuation: $3 billion
EOY price: $34.21

Jamf’s stock has steadily been declining since its first-day trading surge. The company priced its IPO at $26 and had a first-day close of $39.20. Jamf, which deals with Apple enterprise management and was founded in 2002, opened at $34.21 on Dec. 23.

BigCommerce

IPO date: Aug. 4, 2020
IPO price: $24
Last private valuation: Unknown
IPO valuation: $1.6 billion
EOY price: $72

The Austin-based company saw the largest IPO pop for a VC-backed tech company that went public in 2020, with its stock closing its first day of trading up by around 201 percent. Things have settled down a bit since then, and the company is poised to end the year around the same price it started trading. BigCommerce’s stock opened at $72 on Dec. 23.

Duck Creek Technologies

IPO date: Aug. 13, 2020
IPO price: $27
Last private valuation: Unknown
IPO valuation: $3.5 billion
EOY price: $45.83

Duck Creek Technologies was another slightly different venture-backed tech IPO. The company is 20 years old, and private-equity firm Apax Partners acquired a majority stake in the company in 2016. Upon going public, Duck Creek’s stock closed at $40, around 48 percent above its IPO price. It’s gone up since then, and opened at $45.83 on Dec. 23.

Snowflake

IPO date: Sept. 16, 2020
IPO price: $120
Last private valuation: $12.4 billion
IPO valuation: $33.2 billion
$341.16

Snowflake was one of the largest IPOs of this year, along with DoorDash and Airbnb, and came out to be the largest software IPO of all time. Its stock jumped 104 percent on its first day of trading, closing at $253.93. It’s gone up since then, and opened at $341.16 on Dec. 23.

JFrog

IPO date: Sept. 16, 2020
IPO price: $44
Last private valuation: $1 billion
IPO valuation: $4 billion
EOY price: $67.48

JFrog’s IPO probably didn’t get as much as attention as it should have, as it went public the same day as Snowflake, which took a lot of the spotlight. But still, JFrog had an excellent first day of trading. Its stock opened nearly 62 percent above its IPO price of $44 and closed at $64.79. It’s up a bit since then, opening at $67.48 on Dec. 23.

Sumo Logic

IPO date: Sept. 17, 2020
IPO price: $22
Last private valuation: $1 billion
IPO valuation: $2.2 billion
EOY price: $33.89

Sumo Logic had a nice pop on its first day of trading, opening 22 percent above its IPO price. The company’s IPO came during a busy week that also saw JFrog and Snowflake go public. Since Sumo Logic went public, its stock price has increased, opening at $33.89 on Dec. 23.

Amwell Health

IPO date: Sept. 17, 2020
IPO price: $18
Last private valuation: Unknown
IPO valuation: $3.96 billion
EOY price: $29

This year has been a big one for telehealth and telemedicine companies. IPOs for telehealth companies Amwell and One Medical were notable for that reason. Amwell closed its first day of trading at $23.07, above its IPO price of $18. Its stock has risen since then, opening at $29 on Dec. 23.

Unity

IPO date: Sept. 18, 2020
IPO price: $52
Last private valuation: More than $6 billion
IPO valuation: $13.7 billion
EOY price: $174.89

Video game software development company Unity Technologies has had a big year, with gaming and entertainment seeing a boost because of the large number of people staying home this year. Its stock has also surged to more than triple its IPO price from around four months ago after a strong stock market debut. The company’s stock opened at $174.89 on Dec. 23.

Palantir

IPO date: Sept. 30, 2020
Reference price: $7.25
Last private valuation: $10.5 billion, according to CNBC
IPO valuation: $22 billion
EOY price: $28.95

Palantir’s long-awaited public debut came in the form of a direct listing. It began trading at $10, 38 percent above its reference price of $7.25, but closed its first and second days of trading below $10. Its stock has gone up since then and opened at $28.95 on Dec. 23.

Asana

IPO date: Sept. 30, 2020
Reference price: $21
Last private valuation: At least $2 billion, per Crunchbase
IPO valuation: $5.5 billion
EOY price: $30.50

Because Asana went public through a direct listing rather than a traditional IPO, there was no first-day stock surge, though the stock did open higher than its reference price of $21. The project management software co-founded by Facebook co-founder Dustin Moskovitz was one of two notable direct listings this year. Asana’s stock has steadily climbed since then, opening at $30.50 on Dec. 23.

McAfee

IPO date: Oct. 22, 2020
IPO price: $20
Last private valuation: Unknown
IPO valuation: $8.6 billion
EOY price: $17.46

McAfee’s stock hasn’t performed well since it went public (for the second time) in October. The company’s stock closed its first day of trading at $18.70, lower than its IPO price of $20. Its stock has declined further since then, opening at $17.46 on Dec. 23.

Root Insurance

IPO date: Oct. 28, 2020
IPO price: $27
Last private valuation: $3.65 billion
IPO valuation: $6.7 billion
EOY price: $19.50

Root Insurance was another buzzy insurtech company to go public in 2020, following Lemonade. The Ohio-based company’s IPO ended up being the largest in the state’s history, according to Investopedia. However, Root’s stock hasn’t performed as well as Lemonade’s, or that well in general. The company closed its first day of trading at $27, the same as its IPO price, which is a little odd during a time when companies see their stock surge on the first day of trading. Its stock has fallen since then, and opened at $19.50 on Dec. 23.

C3.ai

IPO date: Dec. 9, 2020
IPO price: $42
Last private valuation: Unknown
IPO valuation: $9.6 billion
EOY price: $166.90

C3.ai was one of the lesser-known companies to go public the week of Dec. 9, as consumer-facing household names like Airbnb and DoorDash also started trading on the public markets. But the enterprise artificial intelligence company has had a stellar performance so far, nonetheless. Its stock more than doubled on its first day of trading, closing at $92.49. C3.ai has continued to climb, with its stock opening at $166.90 on Dec. 23.

DoorDash

IPO date: Dec. 9, 2020
IPO price: $102
Last private valuation: $16 billion
IPO valuation: $39 billion
EOY price: $155

DoorDash’s business saw a boom this year with so many people stuck at home and ordering food. And the company ended a big year with one of the largest IPOs of 2020. DoorDash’s stock surged 85 percent on its first day of trading, though the company’s stock has trickled off since then, with its stock opening at $155 on Dec. 23.

Airbnb

IPO date: Dec. 10, 2020
IPO price: $68
Last private valuation: $18 billion, per CNBC, down from $31 billion pre-COVID.
IPO valuation: $47 billion
EOY price: $162.81

While Airbnb faced several challenges this year because of the COVID-19 pandemic’s effects on travel, the company still went public in 2020, as it said it would last year, and ended up being the largest tech IPO of the year. Its stock more than doubled during its first day of trading. While it hasn’t been trading for long on the public markets, Airbnb’s stock price has gone up, opening at $162.81 on Dec. 23.

Wish

IPO date: Dec. 16, 2020
IPO price: $24
Last private valuation: $11.2 billion
IPO valuation: $14.1B billion
EOY price: $22.22

Wish was one of the last venture-backed tech companies to go public this year. It’s only been on the public markets for about a week, so take its end-of-year price with a grain of salt. The company’s opening trade when it went public was $22.75, according to CNBC, and it closed its first day of trading at $20.05 after pricing at $24. Its stock is still down, opening at $22.22 on Dec. 23.