Juniper Networks’ CEO, CTO and others will be at NYSE this morning to ring the Opening Bell and hold an analyst and press meeting on the occasion of the company’s transfer to NYSE from Nasdaq and the 40th anniversary of the Internet.
I had no idea the Internet was turning 40. Should I have baked Al Gore a cake?
Starting today, I'm trying something new: NYX Aggregator, a weekly summary of news from or about NYSE Euronext and its various markets, products, and services. Items from here, there and everywhere, filtered through the glass onion of yours truly, and I think that's enough Beatles references for one sentence. But hey, cut me some slack -- today is John Lennon's birthday.
From Scott Cutler: Secondary offerings by publicly listed companies have raised over $176 billion on the NYSE so far this year, proving that there is plenty of cash on the sidelines that wants to be put to work. This healthy appetite has also created the most vibrant IPO market in the last two years. So far, $7 billion has been raised on the NYSE through initial public offerings (and another $1.5 billion on Nasdaq), with six companies debuting last week, another nine expected over the next two weeks and the pipeline for the next three quarters as strong as we've seen it in at least a couple of years.
From Steven Poser: The parity model, coupled with DMM responsibilities means there is no better place to send your order for an issue listed on the NYSE or NYSE Amex. Compare our quoted spreads to other exchanges that try to compete with us.
Reuters reports from Brazil today:
* NYSE expects 20 IPOs in 2009, up from 15 so far
* Company encouraged for 2010 IPOs on filings backlog
* NYSE CEO says high-frequency trades should be encouraged
Here are some facts from today's press releases about the two IPOs, to offer some perspective.
I thought it might be neat to post all of the interviews in one place as they become publicly available, to offer a quick look at how one CEO tells the story of his company on a milestone day.
We've had only 14 IPOs to date this year, but a healthy 134 secondary offerings. Duncan says those IPOs that have come to market have "set up well, their books have come together well, they've priced well and traded well."
One factor that is causing non-U.S. companies to wait on the sidelines: they're looking to see what comes of the U.S. regulatory reforms, their CEOs tell Duncan.
From Scott Cutler: I recently returned from my second trip to Brazil this year. The country has seized upon the opportunity presented by the crisis to vault onto the global stage. When the B and C in BRIC come together, the world takes note. China recently invested $10B into Petrobras, and also just passed the U.S. as Brazil's largest trading partner. Capitalizing on this global opportunity, President Lula, as well as executives from the largest Brazilian companies, have been touring the globe in China, U.S., Europe and the Middle East, raising capital from investors who see the alpha in Brazil.
"The U.S. capital market is still the most mature in the world, has the deepest pool of liquidity and has the broadest shareholder base," said Scott Cutler, the head of listings at New York Stock Exchange parent NYSE Euronext.
MARIA BARTIROMO: The proposals coming out of the Obama Administration are the talk of the business world, particularly the tax on international profits. What are you hearing about this new proposal to tax profits differently?
DUNCAN L. NIEDERAUER: I was in Texas and California in recent weeks and probably met with 100 company executives. The reactions among many could be summarized in the following two observations. No. 1: Doesn’t the Obama Administration recognize that most [big] U.S. companies are multinationals that happen to be headquartered in the U.S.? No. 2: Doesn’t the Obama Administration appreciate that a multinational headquartered in the U.S. doing business overseas does not mean the company is evading taxes? If somebody who’s operating in the U.S. has an overseas business with a mailbox in a tax haven then obviously that is bad behavior and should be dealt with. Companies that have overseas businesses in legitimate tax jurisdictions, who pay taxes in those jurisdictions on the business they do there, that is not in the same category. And what I’m hearing from executives is that this proposal suggests we’re all behaving badly, when, in fact, I would imagine very few of us are.
From Scott Cutler: As our customers know, public companies will have to find unique ways of reaching investors, especially if the analyst slide continues. We see Virtua Research as one piece of that puzzle. NYSE.com now contains a financial modeling tool for select NYSE and NYSE Amex companies.
From Scott CutIer: I hope all you have noticed the string of successful IPOs listing recently, and that all of them have listed on the NYSE. Today marks the listing of the fifth domestic IPO on the U.S. markets, SolarWinds, Inc. In the most difficult IPO market in recent memory, SolarWinds and all four of the 2009 domestic IPOs before it, have chosen to list with the world’s most diverse exchange group, NYSE Euronext.
"Collaboration with the New York Stock Exchange, which operates the Euronext exchange, can be important bridge for Israeli companies ready for large offerings overseas. Especially now, when the primary market is frozen, we see the arrival of senior NYSE executives to Israel as an important vote of confidence in Israeli high-tech."
From Scott Cutler: Despite troubled economies around the globe, CEOs see silver linings, from retaining and hiring skilled employees to an active M&A market. The collective CEO views focus on business basics: remaining liquid, staying close to customers, and attracting shareholders.
From Scott Cutler: If you haven't noticed, there has been a tremendous amount of capital raised in the last few weeks. A total of $60B has been raised in secondary offerings so far this year, with 2/3rd of that since April 1, and 50 percent ($30B) in the last two weeks. The five top deals account for about a third of all secondary capital raised. Wells Fargo--$7.5B, Goldman--$5B, Morgan Stanley--$4B, ArcelorMittal--$2.9B, and US Bancorp--$2.5B.
The market for initial public offerings is still difficult to access for start-ups, but there are signs the window finally may be opening, our CEO Duncan Niederauer and U.S. Listings chief Scott Cutler told a group of reporters in our Palo Alto, Calif. office yesterday.
From Scott Cutler: Everybody was watching this week to see if the IPO market could get some legs again. The successful debuts of Bridgepoint Education and Rosetta Stone on NYSE Euronext effectively doubled the number of IPOs we have seen in the market this year and will help to lay a foundation for a stronger market that is really important for our economy.
These two events highlighted the changes in and importance of investors, traders, pricing and the effects of IPOs on the overall economy. Here are my observations on what we learned.
Deeper liquidity, more accurate price discovery, broader participation, all at one of the most critical times of the trading day.
The numbers are almost unbelievable, a CEO says. Millions of deaths, millions of orphans. People throw up their hands and say, what can we possibly do; it's too big.
Or maybe it isn't.
From Scott Cutler: I was very impressed with the soundness of the Brazilian financial system. Brazilian banks have shown no signs of being contaminated by problematic assets and are showing healthy balance sheets. Interest rates remain relatively high at around 12%, with expectations that rates may dip below 10%, a rate that "had never been seen" by tenured executives at the largest banks. However, Brazil today is very different from its turbulent past.
From Scott Cutler: With all the buzz about Bernanke's comments on 60 Minutes last night, you may not have seen the Reuters article outlining some of the NYSE's efforts with emerging growth companies. While the NYSE is proud that it lists some of the largest and best-known companies in the world, few are aware that some of the fastest-growing brands and companies list here too (think Netezza, RackSpace, NetSuite, K12 and 3Par, among others). In fact, about a third of NYSE-listed companies have a market cap of less than $1 billion.
From Scott Cutler: Small and medium enterprises have seen increased difficulty in their ability to raise funds due to the global financial crisis. We see a partnership with NYSE Amex as part of the solution. A listing here offers significant opportunities for companies to establish a presence in the international capital market, access more investors and be associated with a global brand.
From Scott Cutler: Today marks the first day of “when issued” trading for Time Warner Inc’s (NYSE: TWX) spin-off distribution of its ownership interest of Time Warner Cable Inc. (NYSE: TWC). Unlike an IPO, a spin is unique because the market has the ability to get an early feel for how the companies will trade after the transaction. Both NYSE and NYSE Amex consistently use when-issued trading, which benefits both the investors and the listed companies.
The company has important news to cover in Brazil and Santa Monica, and your humble blogger is willing to make the terrible sacrifice of leaving New York (18 degrees Fahrenheit this morning, not that that matters to me) to deliver first-person blogging from the business front. In Brazil. And Santa Monica.
From Scott Cutler: Trading below a dollar used to signal impending bankruptcy -- not anymore. We believe that many companies have fallen victim to broad market moves even though they continue to have solid balance sheets, revenues and growth prospects.
From Scott Cutler: In what I have described as the first drip in the glacial melt of the global IPO market, Mead Johnson, a Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMY) carve-out, successfully debuted on the NYSE yesterday. The IPO raised $720mm, priced at the high end of its price range, and traded up during the first day of trading. Investor demand for the offering was very strong, despite the near 400-point drop in the Dow on the day of pricing.
Last week I was in Davos for the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting -- my first time attending. Despite the prevailing economic gloom and uncertainty, I thought the global dialogue was interesting and constructive. Here are a few take-aways that may be of interest to our corporate community in the U.S. and abroad.
