2012 IPOs see most money raised since 2000

2012 was a good year for IPOs, but it ended on a low note in the fourth quarter

So I have good news and bad news. The good news is that 2012 was a huge year for IPOs, with companies raising more capital than any other year since 2000. The bad news: it was largely driven by Facebook : /

Facebook actually bumped up the overall 2012 IPO total, and also freaked out investors, resulting in a lower-than-usual fourth quarter, according to a report released Wednesday by Dow Jones VentureSource.

All told, 50 venture-backed companies went public and raised a total of $11.2 billion in 2012, a 109% increase over the $5.4 billion raised by 46 IPOs in 2011. Facebook’s IPO accounts for 61% of that total, with $6.8 billion. VentureSource’s analysts look specifically at the number of shares issued by the company, excluding shares offered by existing shareholders. So while Facebook’s IPO raised a total of $16 billion altogether, Facebook itself pulled in $6.8 billion.

Business and financial services saw the most activity in 2012 with 11 IPOs raising $1.4 billion—a 221% increase in capital over last year. The two largest IPOs in the fourth quarter came from the business and financial services category: HR technology company Workday, and identity theft protection service provider Lifelock.

“Public-market investors have shifted away from consumer-focused Web companies in recent months,” said Zoran Basich, editor of Dow Jones VentureWire. “Enterprise software companies with solid revenue models have become more attractive, especially as some of those companies have performed very well in their debuts.”

The top 10 tech IPOs for 2012 include:

1)      Facebook, with $6.8 billion raised

2)      Workday, with $637 million raised

3)      Splunk, with $212 million

4)      Palo Alto Networks, with $196 million

5)      Service Now, with $162 million

6)      ExactTarget, with $161 million

7)      Lifelock, with $139 million

8)      Millennial Media, with $119 million

9)      Guidewire Software, with $115 million

10)   Bazaarvoice, with $108 million

The fourth quarter didn’t fare so well. Eight IPOs raised $1.2 billion in the fourth quarter, a 48% decrease from the $2.4 billion raised by 10 IPOs in Q4 2011.

And while IPOs raised more money in 2012 than they have in the past decade, M&As weren’t quite so hot, with the fewest exits seen since 2009. There were 408 M&A deals in 2012, compared to 528 in 2011, and M&A activity in 2012 raised a total of $37.4 billion, a 23% decrease from $48.4 billion in 2011.

Check out our recent look at how some of the biggest tech IPOs fared in 2012. 

Image source: theatlantic.com