GEN poll voters were almost evenly split on whether they think the IPO window will swing open wider in 2012. When asked to forecast what the IPO market would look like this year, 51.1% thought there would be more IPO activity, 46.7% thought the window would remain narrow, and 2.2% were undecided.
The number of IPOs in 2011 (13) was fewer than 2010 (16). Of the 26 IPIOs launched since 2010, two-thirds now trade at a loss to investors. However, some signs of hope exist, judging from a smaller percentage of firms discounting on their IPOs this year compared to last year as well as their post-IPO performance and the fact that of the two most recent biopharma companies to go public, one is trading above its IPO price, while another is unchanged.