IPO Pops Intensify as Biotech Surges 95% to Year's Best Debut

(Bloomberg) -- A stretch of IPOs surging in their debuts grew more dramatic on Thursday, with a pair of record-breaking pops from the health sector that included the best start for any 2019 IPO.

First, Bridgebio Pharma Inc. opened 80% above Wednesday’s IPO price, the biggest opening gain by any biotech or pharma IPO this year. It dethroned Stoke Therapeutics Inc., which opened 51% above its IPO price just last week.

Six minutes after Bridgebio started trading, Adaptive Biotechnologies Corp. opened even higher. Shares traded at nearly double their IPO price, surpassing CrowdStrike Holdings Inc. to become the year’s biggest pop from any sector. CrowdStrike opened 87% above its IPO price on June 12.

Adaptive and Bridgebio became the seventh and eighth IPOs since Memorial Day to surge by at least 50% from their IPO prices in their debut sessions, a feat accomplished just once over the first five months of 2019.

Other recent pops include Chewy Inc., Revolve Group, Inc., Fiverr International Ltd. and Personalis Inc.

Read more: IPO Pops Testing a Decade High After Slack Debut: ECM Watch

To contact the reporter on this story: Drew Singer in New York at dsinger28@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Brad Olesen at bolesen3@bloomberg.net, Steven Fromm

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