Sherwood News

Where did all the UK IPOs go?

The London Stock Exchange had fewer new IPO listings last year than during the global financial crisis.

2/27/25 9:38AM

Things went from bad to worse for London’s capital markets scene last year when the UK saw the lowest number of IPOs in decades, with a mere 17 listings added — down 96% from its 2005 peak.

London’s reputation as a leading destination for equities suffered a further blow after mining giant Glencore, which has a market cap of £39 billion, said last week that it was considering moving its main stock listing overseas. That follows a number of high-profile departures like Paddy Power owner Flutter Entertainment and Just Eat. Indeed, in 2024, a total of 88 companies “delisted or transferred their primary listing from London’s main market,” per the Financial Times.

Fundraisings reportedly shrunk down to ~$800 million in 2024, taking a mere 0.81% share of the global IPO market. That’s fewer than what tiny frontier markets like Oman pulled in, per Bloomberg.

Small fish, bigger ponds

Part of the issue has been the willingness of executives to list overseas — with the deeper liquidity and loftier valuations of the enormous American market proving magnetic. But what’s striking for London is that it has plummeted as a choice even against its European peers, taking up only 2% of all European IPO activities as of May last year, a surprising defeat when you consider that the London Stock Exchange was the largest center for IPOs globally outside of the US or China in 2021.

Looking to 2025, stakes are high with NYSE dropout Shein waiting on approval for a UK listing after the US Securities and Exchange Commission spurned its initial plans — which, if approved, could be one of the biggest flotations on the British exchange this decade.

The good news? UK stocks are actually enjoying a rare sliver of outperformance: the FTSE 100 has gained 7% this year, while US stocks are up 2%, which, if it continues, could galvanize management teams to back Britain.

Tasha Matsumoto

12h

Semiconductors slump, dragging down stocks

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 fell as chip stocks and AI-linked names lost steam. Oil prices slid on the prospect of the Strait of Hormuz reopening.

Paige Oamek13h

Lionsgate closes higher on Netflix acquisition rumor

Shares for the film production company Lionsgate soared on Tuesday following rumors of a potential buyout.

According to a person familiar with the possible merger and acquisitions deal, streaming giant Netflix is one of the companies that may be interested in buying Lionsgate Studios, per reporting by Semafor.

Neither Lionsgate nor Netflix confirmed the news, but nevertheless the stock climbed, closing up 14%.

Netflix closed lower on news that Fox will acquire Roku in an approximately $22 billion deal after it was also rumored that the streaming company was interested in that acquisition. “Netflix did not make a bid for Roku,” a spokesperson told Semafor. This comes after Netflix withdrew its buyout bid for Warner Bros. Discovery earlier this year.

Lionsgate’s shares are up 77% since January. Lionsgate owns massive franchises like “John Wick” and “The Hunger Games.” The film company has a market cap of approximately $4.7 billion, making it roughly 5x smaller than Roku and 13x smaller than Warner Bros.

Helena Cheng16h

Oil tumbles below $80 to 3-month low on US-Iran deal

Oil prices slid to their lowest levels in more than three months today after a preliminary ceasefire agreement between the US and Iran raised expectations that more crude could return to global markets and key shipping routes through the Strait of Hormuz could reopen.

Brent crude fell below $78 a barrel while West Texas Intermediate dropped to $73.31, extending losses as traders priced in lower geopolitical risk premiums tied to Middle East supply disruptions.

The preliminary pact announced by President Donald Trump and Iranian leaders establishes a 60-day ceasefire to end the active hostilities that have choked the Middle East since late February. A formal memorandum of understanding is scheduled to be officially signed in Switzerland this Friday, according to Bloomberg report.

Trump said on Sunday that the Strait of Hormuz would be opened when the agreement is signed in Switzerland on Friday, writing on Truth Social, “Ships of the World, start your engines. Let the oil flow!”

US Energy Department data, meanwhile, showed that America’s strategic oil stockpiles sank last week to their lowest level since 1983, indicating sustained demand to rebuild them even if the Mideast conflict ends.

Stocks that moved lower:

Devon Energy, Chevron, Occidental Petroleum, and Phillips 66 fell as oil prices dropped.

Helena Cheng19h

Eos Energy surges on commercial launch of second battery production line

Eos Energy Enterprises is surging in early trading after announcing the official start of commercial production at its second automated battery manufacturing line.

In a statement, the company said this milestone positions it to scale production of its proprietary zinc-based long-duration energy storage systems to meet rising commercial demand.

Management touted the enhanced efficiency of this facility, with design upgrades slashing raw material travel by 86% and shortening the physical production line length by 40% compared to Line 1.

“Battery Line 2 demonstrates our ability to continuously improve as we scale,” said John Mahaz, Chief Operating Officer of Eos. “It validates that our manufacturing system can be replicated and scaled with discipline.”

The battery energy storage company confirmed that while subassemblies will continue coming online through the early third quarter, full production capacity is targeted for the fourth quarter of 2026. The ultimate goal is to hit an aggregate 4 gigawatt-hours of annual manufacturing capacity by the end of 2026. Management also highlighted that Battery Line 1 already surpassed its full-year 2025 output within the first 164 days of 2026.

Today’s announcement builds on recent operational momentum for Eos, which posted better-than-expected Q1 sales and announced a joint venture with Cerberus Capital Management in May. However, shares are still down 37% year to date.

For the full year, Eos still expects to achieve revenues between $300 million and $400 million, in line with its previously provided guidance.

Luke Kawa6/15/26

Qualcomm reportedly in talks to acquire AI chip design company Tenstorrent

Qualcomm is in talks to acquire AI chip design firm Tenstorrent for $8 billion to $10 billion, according to The Information.

This transaction, if completed, would be another concrete signal of the San Diego-based chip company’s attempt to carve out a niche in the upstream AI space (data centers), rather than focusing on end-user devices.

Qualcomm’s key business of handset chips has fallen on hard times, particularly in China, due to the memory chip shortage.

Less than eight weeks ago, the chip company was the lowlight in the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index, down about 20% year to date.

Shares proceeded to surge over 60%, buoyed by optimism that the rising AI tide will lift all boats. With the release of Q2 earnings, CEO Cristiano Amon said that initial shipments of AI chips to a “leading hyperscaler” were on track for later this year, and to expect more on the company’s AI growth plans at its investor day on June 24 (next week). Last month, Bloomberg reported that Qualcomm is poised to sell “millions” of AI chips to TikTok parent ByteDance.

Established AI chip giants and hyperscalers alike have reached agreements with or gobbled up burgeoning AI chip companies as the boom rolls on. In December, Nvidia announced a major licensing deal with AI inference specialist Groq, while Meta bought AI chip startup Rivos in September.