IPO trends Q4 2024

John Means Date published: Feb 05, 25

In the fourth quarter of 2024 there were 80 new initial public offerings (IPOs), which raised a combined total of $8.8 billion. Despite total IPOs increasing by 33% from the previous quarter and reaching a high point for the year, total gross proceeds decreased by 17% in Q4, the smallest combined gross proceeds of any quarter in 2024.  The increase in IPOs and corresponding decrease in gross proceeds indicates that average gross proceeds for IPOs for the fourth quarter were much lower than previous quarters.

Compared to Q4 2023, total IPOs doubled, while total IPO proceeds increased by 109%.  The majority of Q4 IPOs were completed in October with 38 total IPOs compared to 21 for both November and December.  Historically, the month of October has had the most follow-through days which are likely to lead into a sustained rally in the stock market.

IPO type

Traditional IPOs, once again, constituted the majority of the public offerings this quarter. There were 55 traditional IPOs, representing 69% of total public offerings for the quarter, nearly identical to the proportion of traditional IPOs in Q3 2024.

Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (SPACs) represented 29% of total IPOs in Q4 with a total of 23 new offerings. Compared to last quarter SPAC IPOs increased by 28% while traditional IPOs increased by 31%.

Traditional IPOs raised an average of $95.2 million, nearly half of the traditional IPO average in Q3 2024. SPAC IPOs raised an average of $148 million per IPO in Q4, down from $169 million per IPO the previous quarter.  Traditional IPO average gross proceeds were negatively impacted by an unusual amount of foreign issuer IPOs with an initial offering price of $4.00.

Unicorn IPO 

During Q4 2024, there was only one company that raised over $1 billion in proceeds from its public offering.  The third largest IPO of the year in terms of proceeds, StandardAero, Inc. raised $1.44 billion.  StandardAero is an aircraft maintenance service provider with clients including GE Aerospace, Rolls-Royce and Southwest Airlines.  The company priced its IPO at $24 per share, which was higher than the initial targeted range of $20-23. StandardAero, Inc. trades on the New York Stock Exchange. 

Auditor market share 

Overall, there were 34 different firms that audited the 80 newly listed companies in Q4 2024. WithumSmith + Brown led all auditors in terms of total IPO client count with 14 new IPO clients after leading in Q3 as well with 11 clients. Withum also tied with PwC for the most IPO clients in Q2. Withum individually represented 18% of all Q4 2024 IPOs. PwC and WWC PC Certified Public Accountants, trailing Withum by a large margin, tied for auditing the second most IPOs this quarter with six each.

In Q4, PwC ranked number one in terms of client gross proceeds.  PwC’s six clients raised a total of $3.49 billion in gross proceeds and was the auditor of record for StandardAero, Inc., the largest IPO of the quarter.  Withum followed PwC with a total of $2.29 billion in IPO client proceeds, nearly identical to last quarter's figure at $2.27 billion.  

Auditor market share – SPACs 

Eight firms audited the 23 SPAC IPOs of Q3 2024. Withum was the dominant player in the SPAC IPO market, auditing 13 SPAC IPOs this quarter after auditing 11 of the 18 SPACs in Q3. All but one of Withum’s 14 total IPO clients in Q3 2024 were SPACs and raised a combined total of $2.28 billion in proceeds. Withum accounted for 57% of the SPAC IPO market share this quarter.  Marcum audited three SPAC IPOs in Q4 with total gross proceeds of $400 million, up from $50 million in gross proceeds for Q3. 

Direct listings

A less common type of public offering is a direct listing. In a direct listing, investors and employees offer their existing shares to the public instead of issuing new shares like in the case of a traditional IPO and can avoid costly underwriting expenses.  There were two direct listings in Q4 for Zenatech, Inc. and Damon Inc. which together raised approximately $181 million in gross proceeds. Marcum audited the direct listing IPO for Damon Inc. while Bansal & Co. was the auditor of record for the Zenatech, Inc. IPO.