IPO Pricing in the Dot-Com Bubble: Complacency or Incentives?

Ljungqvist, Alexander; Wilhelm, William J.

doi:10.2139/ssrn.295662

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IPO Pricing in the Dot-Com Bubble: Complacency or Incentives?

NYU Stern School of Business Finance Dept. FIN-01-061

40 Pages Posted: 9 Jan 2002

See all articles by Alexander Ljungqvist

Alexander Ljungqvist

Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR); Swedish House of Finance; European Corporate Governance Institute (ECGI)

William J. Wilhelm

University of Virginia - McIntire School of Commerce

Date Written: December 11, 2001

Abstract

IPO initial returns reached astronomical levels during 1999-2000. We show that the regime shift in initial returns and other elements of pricing behavior can be at least partially accounted for by a variety of marked changes in pre-IPO ownership structure and insider selling behavior over the period which reduced key decision-makers' incentives to control underpricing. After controlling for these changes, there appears to be little special about the 1999-2000 period, aside from the preponderance of internet and high-tech firms going public. Our results suggest that it was firm characteristics that were unique during the "dot-com bubble" and that pricing behavior followed from incentives created by these characteristics.

Keywords: Initial public offerings, Underpricing, Intermediation, Internet, Hot issue markets

JEL Classification: G32, G24

Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation

Ljungqvist, Alexander and Ljungqvist, Alexander and Wilhelm, William J., IPO Pricing in the Dot-Com Bubble: Complacency or Incentives? (December 11, 2001). NYU Stern School of Business Finance Dept. FIN-01-061, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=295662 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.295662