Yelp IPO as Compared to Other Internet Offerings

March 2, 2012

•

2 min read

Yelp (YELP) is off and running, posting a massive opening jump. Yelp’s IPO price of $15 was clearly a modest one as Yelp opened up 47 percent and soon leapt as high as 73 percent before settling in at almost 65 percent.

Despite Yelp being initially priced at the high-end of its projected range, it had the sort of massive first-day spike for an internet company that appeared to be less common as of late. Yelp’s major boost makes it one of the biggest gainers for an opening day in the last year.

Here’s a quick look back at other internet IPOs in the last year, how they fared on their first day, and where they’re at now.

Zynga (ZNGA)

IPO Date: December 16, 2011
IPO Price: $10/share
First Day Close: $9.50, down 5 percent
Currently: $14.69, up 54.63 percent since opening day close

Zynga is the only internet IPO that actually finished down on its first day. The company has been dogged by concerns that it’s too reliant on Facebook (FB) for its revenues, but it’s made major gains since its IPO and showed a real profit in its first earnings report.

Pandora (P)

IPO Date: June 15, 2011
IPO Price: $16/share
Opening Day Close: $17.42, up 8.88 percent
Currently: $13.90, down 20.20 percent since first day close

The internet radio company posted only a modest gain on its first day of trading, but it briefly reached $26 before falling to its current price.

Angie’s List (ANGI)

IPO Date: November 17, 2011
IPO Price: $13/share
First Day Close: $16.26, up 25 percent
Currently: $15.25, down 6.21 percent since first day close

Angie’s List might be the most similar business to Yelp, offering customer generated reviews of service companies.

Groupon (GRPN)

IPO Date: November 4, 2011
IPO Price: $20/share
First Day Close: $26.11, up 30.55 percent
Currently: $19.20, down 26.46 percent from first day close

Groupon’s business model has been the subject of great scrutiny, but it’s issued 2012 guidance that beat analysts expectations and will have ample chance to prove the shorts wrong.

LinkedIn (LNKD)

IPO Date: May 19, 2011
IPO Price: $45 per share
First Day Close: $94.25, up 109.44 percent
Currently: $87.50, down 7.16 percent since opening day close

LinkedIn may be the poster boy for excess on the first day of an IPO, and the stock quickly fell under $65 per share soon after. LinkedIn, though, has started using its social media platform to transition into the role of corporate recruiter, making for a solid earnings report for Q4 2011 and a sign that the first day close might not have been too high after all.