The Nasdaq Stock Market, Inc. (Nasdaq:NDAQ) today announced its new listing statistics for the first quarter of 2007.
NASDAQ(r) had its strongest first quarter performance for IPO listings since the beginning of 2000. The total number of initial public offerings (IPOs) for the quarter, 42, were the most IPOs in a first quarter on NASDAQ since the same period seven years ago. Six of the 10 largest IPOs in the U.S. by proceeds raised listed on NASDAQ in the first quarter, led by National CineMedia, Inc. -- the largest U.S. IPO year-to-date.
NASDAQ continued to capture more new listings than any other U.S. exchange, with the majority of new listings as measured by both issues and proceeds. During the first quarter, NASDAQ captured 73 new listings, comprised of the following categories:
First Quarter 2007 Total New Listings 73 Initial Public Offerings 42 AMEX Switches 6 OTCBB & Pink Sheet Upgrades 16 ETFs, Structured Products & Other Listings 9
For the quarter, NASDAQ attracted 82% of the IPO issues eligible for initial listing on its NASDAQ Global Select Market, which has the highest listing standards in the world, or any listing market of the NYSE Group. Proceeds from all IPO issues on NASDAQ totaled $6.3 billion, accounting for 69% of the $9.5 billion raised across all U.S. exchanges.
Notable listings in the first quarter included the IPO of National CineMedia (Nasdaq:NCMI), and Clearwire Corporation (Nasdaq:CLWR) and the switches from the American Stock Exchange, Akorn, Inc. (Nasdaq:AKRX) and Delta Financial Corporation (Nasdaq:DFC). NASDAQ also saw several defense industry listings, including the initial listing of Force Protection, Inc. (Nasdaq:FRPT) and AeroVironment, Inc. (Nasdaq:AVAV).
NASDAQ saw 12 non-U.S. new listings in the first quarter, including the IPOs of Chinese media company Xinhau Media Finance Limited (Nasdaq:XFML) and Bermuda-based insurer Castlepoint Holdings Ltd. (Nasdaq:CPHL).
Statistics are sourced from internal NASDAQ information. IPOs include offerings done on a "best efforts" basis. For more information about these and other NASDAQ market performance statistics, visit www.nasdaqfacts.com/newlistings.
NASDAQ is the largest U.S. electronic equities exchange. With approximately 3,200 companies, it lists more companies and, on average, trades more shares per day than any other U.S. electronic market. It is home to companies that are leaders across all areas of business including technology, retail, communications, financial services, transportation, media and biotechnology. NASDAQ is the primary market for trading NASDAQ-listed stocks as well as a leading liquidity pool for trading NYSE-listed stocks. For more information about NASDAQ, visit the NASDAQ Web site at www.nasdaq.com or the NASDAQ Newsroom at www.nasdaq.com/newsroom/.