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In 2003, NASDAQ became the marketplace for 54 IPO's. Ninety three percent of these IPO's came in the second half of 2003. The consumer non-cyclical sector led the way with 13 IPO's, followed by Technology - 12 IPO's, Finance - 12 IPO's, Consumer Cyclical 8 IPO's, Industrial - 6 IPO's, Communications 3 - IPO's. This year through January of 2004, NASDAQ has had 5 IPO's raising approx. $370M in capital.
Index Statistics:
- The NASDAQ composite gained 50.01% for the calendar year ending 12/31/03. This was the largest gain since 1999 and the third largest gain in 20 years. We saw approximately 85% of the NASDAQ listed companies show gains for 2003. The catalyst for 2003 was the ability of NASDAQ listed companies to demonstrate improved operating efficiencies. Companies also benefited from economic indicators pointing towards improvement in manufacturing and jobless claims bottoming out.
- The NASDAQ-100 increased 49.12% in 2003. The index saw 96% of its components show gains for the calendar year ending 12/31/03. With 63% of the index made up of non-tech companies the performance of the NASDAQ 100 index was widespread and indicative of a broad based rally.
- The NASDAQ Financial 100 Index rose 28.10% in 2003. This was the largest gain for the index since 1997. The rally was wide spread as 97 out of the 100 companies in the index experienced gains for the year. Banks and thrifts, which comprise 76 percent of the index, were the main drivers behind the gains. With the Federal Reserve Bank maintaining a very accommodative monetary policy throughout the year, the housing market benefited greatly from record low mortgage rates; banks and thrifts in turn were the big winners.
- The NASDAQ Banking Index gained 29.93%, the highest return since 1997. This sector benefited from low mortgage rates and an accommodative Fed. Of the 554 companies* within the NASDAQ Banking index, 96.4% or 534 banks advanced from their closing levels at year-end 2002. This compared with 82.5% (or 457 companies) of the index that advanced in 2002.
- The NASDAQ Transportation Index gained 35.20%, the highest return since 1991. A strengthening economy and relief from geopolitical concerns contributed to the gains. The gain of 35.20% was the highest return for the transportation sector since 1991 and compares favorably with a gain of only 0.99% for 2002.
- The retail sector gained 29.03% as shown in the performance of the Bloomberg US Retail Index. This sector is sensitive to moves in consumer spending reports. Retail is the second-largest industry in the United States both in number of establishments and number of employees. The retail industry employs over 23 million Americans and generates more than $3 trillion in retail sales annually.
- The NASDAQ Biotech index gained 45.75%. The NASDAQ Biotech Index was launched in 1993 and has since gained 258.90%. The index contains 129 companies. NASDAQ a strong foothold in the Biotech sector since there are 229 publicly traded Biotech firms, of which 208 trade on NASDAQ. The drivers for biotech stocks are somewhat different from other sectors. These stocks are impacted by clinical trial developments, equity placements, marketing collaborations, and of course, FDA pronouncements. Investors also look at a company's product pipeline.
NASDAQ introduced the Market Intelligence Desk in 2002 as part of NASDAQ's Corporate Client Group. It is a sophisticated integrated resource for NASDAQ issuers looking for timely and objective information combined with market insight. The Market Intelligence Desk utilizes state of the art technology to provide real-time monitoring of company performance and stocks for NASDAQ-listed companies.
NASDAQ® is the world's largest electronic stock market. With approximately 3,300 companies, it lists more companies and, on average, trades more shares per day than any other U.S. market. It is home to category-defining companies that are leaders across all areas of business including technology, retail, communications, financial services, transportation, media and biotechnology industries. NASDAQ is the primary market for trading NASDAQ listed stocks. Approximately 54% of NASDAQ-listed shares traded are reported to NASDAQ systems. For more information about NASDAQ, visit the NASDAQ Web site at www.NASDAQ.com or the NASDAQ NewsroomSM at www.NASDAQnews.com.
