SpaceX has surpassed Amazon's market capitalization in a remarkable post-IPO rally that continues to reshape global technology rankings. The aerospace and technology company's stock finished Tuesday's session up 4.83% at $201.80, giving it an implied valuation of approximately $2.66 trillion, around $8 billion higher than Amazon's market value. The momentum carried into Wednesday's premarket session, with shares rising a further 3.5% by 05:21 ET, as reported by IH Market News. This milestone comes just four trading sessions after SpaceX's historic IPO, which raised $85.7 billion in what became the largest stock market debut ever recorded. The stock had gained roughly 50% from its IPO price of $135 in only four sessions, demonstrating unprecedented investor demand for the AI and aerospace company.
Anthropic PBC's upcoming IPO is creating significant market disruption as it prepares to file publicly for an initial public offering expected to raise as much as SpaceX's record $86.2 billion debut. According to reports from The Hindu BusinessLine, the Claude developer's massive offering is casting a long shadow over companies' US listing plans, making it difficult for other firms to attract investor attention after the September 7 Labor Day holiday. Some firms and their backers are finding it challenging to secure the attention of long-term-oriented investors and sovereign wealth funds when the prospect of an Anthropic IPO is imminent.
The coming stretch presents significant scheduling challenges for IPO candidates, with November's mid-term elections adding complexity to the already crowded calendar. As reported by The Hindu BusinessLine, Rob Stowe, head of Americas equity capital markets at Barclays Plc, noted that there will be a lot of activity but it will be concentrated into a few windows, citing hurdles including a mid-September Federal Reserve meeting followed by the election in early November. The rush to get out ahead of a giant IPO feels familiar, with a similar dynamic unfolding in the run-up to SpaceX's listing when 14 sizable companies went public in the month before Elon Musk's rocket, satellite and AI firm debuted, posting a weighted average loss of 9.5% according to Bloomberg data.
The companies briefing money managers on their IPO plans are heavily tilted toward AI themes, with cloud computing firm Nscale joining Anthropic in the queue. According to The Hindu BusinessLine, notable exceptions include Oura Health Oy, a maker of smart rings that track health, fitness and sleep, which may raise billions of dollars in an IPO as soon as next month. SoftBank Group Corp.-backed digital infrastructure firm SB Energy is expected to target an IPO that will raise more than $5 billion, while Roark Capital-owned Inspire Brands Inc. could test the market before November's elections. Earlier this month, Switch Inc. filed confidentially for a listing that could take place as soon as November, with the company potentially seeking a valuation approaching $50 billion.
Despite the crowded IPO calendar, bankers warn that non-thematic IPOs face particular challenges. As reported by The Hindu BusinessLine, Eddie Molloy, co-head of global equity capital markets at Morgan Stanley, noted that there's so much capital around these big themes — the broader AI infrastructure ecosystem and aerospace and defence — so if you're a small or mid-cap issuer not around these mega trends, it's been harder to garner buyside focus. The year's larger deals have been worse performers, with 16 companies that raised at least $1 billion seeing shares rise only 4.2% on a weighted-average basis, while six of the ten biggest deals are below their offer price. The weighted-average return for US listings this year is 5.6%, markedly lagging a 13% return for the S&P 500 and a 17% gain for the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100.
