The BATS IPO, which is expected in March or April of 2012, offers a rare chance to buy an Initial Public Offering (IPO) of a stock exchange that trades financial instruments, such as stocks and options contracts. BATS, which stands for Better Alternative Trading System , is officially known as BATS Global Markets and is based in just outside of Kansas City, in Lenexa, Kansas. It now operates 2 stock exchanges in the U. S. , the BZX Exchange and the BYX Exchange, collectively known as “The BATS Exchanges”. As of February 2012, the BZX and BYX Exchanges accounted for between 11% to 12% of all US daily equity trading volume, which makes the BATS stock exchange the number three stock exchange in the U. S..
BATS gained approval from the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in late 2011 to list stocks on their stock exchanges. The company has aggressive growth plans, which includes listing of stocks on their stock exchanges and continued growth in world markets. It owns and manages the largest Western european stocks market, which is partially a product of the acquisition BATS made during 2011 of a corresponding rival stock exchange platform called Chi-X Europe.
What Can Be Expected From The BATS IPO
The BATS IPO will be the first IPO to ever list on one of the BATS stock exchanges . Part of the growth system is to attract IPO listings from corporations considering listing on the NY Stock Exchange (NYSE) or NDX, by offering corporations more expedient listing terms and pricing. They will start their technique of being an alternative stock exchange for firms looking to list their stocks on publicly traded exchanges.
The initial public offering will be presented to the investment community in a 14 day road show beginning the week of March 5, 2012. The company is planning on pricing the BATS IPO shares the week of March 19, 2012, but the IPO could be delayed till April, if market conditions are unfavorable. According to documents filed in 2011, but it could raise up to $100 Million. Not surprisingly, the stock will trade as ticker symbol “BATS”.
Although the BATS IPO is listing on the choice BATS stock exchange, BATS has managed to sign up top tier Wall Street firms to act as lead underwriters for the BATS IPO, including Morgan Stanley, Citigroup Inc, and Credit Suisse Group. The recent upsurge in stock prices have opened up a possibility for the BATS IPO to be completed in a positive market environment.
The growth prospects and revenues outlook the company after the BATS IPO are tough to discern. With trading volume on United States and Western european stock markets fading recently and BATS Highly low trading costs, revenue and earnings expansion should be subdued at best.
As the first stock exchange IPO in United States over the past several years, the BATS IPO will be highlighted on the IPO calender this year.
Joe Freedman looks at the latest stock market news to write a blog about stock tips on his penny stock website.