2012 wasn't a particularly different year.
It had its highs and lows the same as any other year.
Everything from financial services companies to technology companies reaching the stock exchange, 2012 saw it all.
However, two juggernauts went public, which profoundly impacted the world. Ten years later, these companies are still growing and shaping our world.
So keep reading to discover which companies went public and how they perform today.
Major world events that happened in 2012 that affected the stock markets
Facebook IPO: In May 2012, Facebook went public in one of the most highly anticipated IPOs in history. Despite the initial excitement, the stock experienced a volatile performance in the following months. It's safe to say that it's generated a profitable return for the early investors.
London Olympics: The 2012 Summer Olympics took place in London, England. Like most Olympic Games, it garners significant global attention and showcases athletic performances, cultural showcases, and memorable moments.
European Debt Crisis: The crisis continued to affect global financial markets throughout 2012. With Greece, Spain, and other countries facing severe economic disasters, including default, it was necessary to bail them out.
Hurricane Sandy: In late October, Hurricane Sandy struck the northeastern United States. It caused widespread damage, power outages, and the unfortunate loss of life. Like many hurricanes, it had second-order effects that significantly impacted various industries and communities.
Top six most interesting companies that went public in 2012
1. Facebook (Rebranded as Meta Platforms)
- Country: United States of America
- Stock Exchange: NASDAQ
- Industry: Internet Content & Information
- IPO Price: $38
- IPO Date: May 18, 2012
Meta (Facebook) is an iconic social media platform that has changed the behavior of social interaction across the globe. It allows users to connect with friends, family, and businesses. Meta provides a variety of features, such as messaging, photo and video sharing, and live streaming. It also offers a marketplace for buying and selling items and a range of tools for businesses to advertise and promote their products and services.
2. Joe's Crab Shack (Part of Landry's, Inc)
- Country: United States of America
- Stock Exchange: NASDAQ
- Industry: Restaurants
- IPO Price: $14
- IPO Date: April 30, 2012
Joe's Crab Shack is a well-known American seafood restaurant chain that serves various seafood dishes, including crab, shrimp, and fish. They offer a wide selection of appetizers, entrees, and desserts, as well as a full bar. It was acquired by Landrys in 2017 for $57 Million.
3. Kayak (Acquired by Priceline)
- Country: United States of America
- Stock Exchange: NASDAQ
- Industry: Travel Services
- IPO Price: $26
- IPO Date: July 20, 2012
Kayak is a travel search engine that helps users compare flights, hotels, and rental car prices. It provides a comprehensive overview of travel options and allows users to book their trips directly from the site. While this is their main feature, they also offer a variety of tools to help users plan their trips, such as a currency converter, trip planner, and flight tracker. Only four months after being made public, Priceline acquired Kayak for approximately $1.8 Billion.
4. Oaktree Capital Management (Acquired by Brookfield Asset Management)
- Country: United States of America
- Stock Exchange: New York Stock Exchange (NYSE)
- Industry: Asset Management
- IPO Price: $43
- IPO Date: April 12, 2012
Oaktree Capital Management is a leading global alternative investment management firm. It specializes in credit strategies, including distressed debt, corporate debt, real estate, and other special situations. Oaktree has over $164 billion in assets under management (as of March 31, 2022) and is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. In September 2019, Brookfield Asset Management acquired 61.2% of the company.
5. Workday, Inc.
- Country: United States of America
- Stock Exchange: NASDAQ
- Industry: Software—Application
- IPO Price: $28
- IPO Date: October 12, 2012
Workday is a leading provider of enterprise cloud applications for finance and human resources. It offers a comprehensive suite of applications for managing global businesses, including financial management, human capital management, planning, analytics, and collaboration. There's a good chance that if you've spent time applying for jobs, you've probably been navigated to a Workday-powered page.
6. Yelp
- Country: United States of America
- Stock Exchange: New York Stock Exchange (NYSE)
- Industry: Internet Content & Information
- IPO Price: $15
- IPO Date: March 2, 2012
Yelp is an online platform that connects people with local businesses. It provides reviews, photos, and other information about small businesses, allowing users to make informed decisions about where to go and what to buy. Yelp also provides an advertising platform for businesses to promote their services.
All 165 companies that had their IPO in 2012
| Company Name | Year Founded | Ticker Code | Current Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Allison Transmission Hldg Inc | 1915 | ALSN | Active |
| Alon USA Partners LP | 2012 | ALDW | Bankrupt |
| Ambarella Inc | 2004 | AMBA | Active |
| Amira Nature Foods Ltd | 1994 | ANFI | Active |
| AmREIT Inc | 2002 | AMRE | Acquired |
| Annie's Inc | 2004 | BNNY | Acquired by General Mills. |
| Ares Commercial RE Corp | -99 | ACRE | Active |
| Ares Dynamic Credit Allocation | 2011 | ARDC | Active |
| Atossa Genetics Inc | 2009 | ATOS | Active |
| Audience Inc | 2000 | ADNC | Active |
| AVG Technologies NV | 1991 | AVG | Acquired by Avast |
| Babson Capital Global Short | 2011 | BGH | Active |
| Bazaarvoice Inc | 2005 | BV | Active |
| Berry Plastics Group Inc | 1982 | BERY | Acquired by Berry Global Inc. |
| BlackRock Muni Target Tr | 2011 | BTT | Active |
| Blackstone/GSO Strategic | 2005 | BGB | Active |
| Bloomin' Brands Inc | 1987 | BLMN | Active |
| Brightcove Inc | 2004 | BCOV | Active |
| Caesars Entertainment Corp | 1937 | CZR | Active |
| CaesarStone Sdot-Yam Ltd | 1987 | CSTE | Active |
| CafePress Inc | 1999 | PRSS | Acquired. |
| Capital Bank Financial Corp | 2009 | CBF | Acquired by First Horizon. |
| Cempra Inc | 2005 | CEMP | Acquired by Melinta Therapeutics |
| Ceres Inc | 1997 | CERE | Active |
| ChemoCentryx Inc | 1997 | CCXI | Active |
| Chuy's Holdings Inc | 1982 | CHUY | Active |
| ClearBridge Energy MLP Total | 2012 | CTR | Active |
| Clearsign Combustion Corp | 2008 | CLIR | Active |
| Cohen & Steers Limited | 2012 | LDP | Active |
| Cushing Renaissance Fund (Renaissance Capital) | -99 | SZC | Active |
| Cushing Royalty & Income Fund | -99 | SRF | Active |
| Del Frisco's Restaurant Grp LL | 1981 | DFRG | Acquired by L Catterton |
| Delek Logistics Partners LP | -99 | DKL | Active |
| Demandware Inc | 2004 | DWRE | Acquired by Salesforce |
| Diamondback Energy Inc | 2007 | FANG | Active |
| Digital Cinema Destinations | 2010 | DCIN | Active |
| Doubleline Opp Cr Fnd | 2011 | DBL | Active |
| Durata Therapeutics Inc | 2009 | DRTX | Acquired by Actavis |
| E2open Inc | 2000 | EOPN | Active |
| Edgen Group Inc | 1983 | EDG | Acquired by Sumitomo Corporation |
| Edwards Group Ltd | 1919 | EVAC | Acquired by Atlas Copco. |
| Eloqua Inc | 2000 | ELOQ | Acquired by Oracle. |
| Enphase Energy Inc | 2006 | ENPH | Active |
| Envivio Inc | 2000 | ENVI | Acquired by Ericsson. |
| EPAM Systems Inc | 1993 | EPAM | Active |
| EQT Midstream Partners LP | 2012 | EQM | Active |
| Erickson Air-Crane Inc | 1971 | EAC | Active |
| EverBank Financial Corp | 2004 | EVER | Acquired by TIAA |
| Exa Corp | 1991 | EXA | Acquired by Dassault Systèmes |
| ExactTarget Inc | 2000 | ET | Acquired by Salesforce |
| Facebook Inc | 2004 | FB | Active |
| First Tr MLP & Energy Income | -99 | FEI | Active |
| Five Below Inc | 2002 | FIVE | Active |
| Fleetmatics Group PLC | 2004 | FLTX | Acquired by Verizon |
| Forum Energy Technologies Inc | 1989 | FET | Active |
| FS Bancorp Inc | -99 | FSBW | Active |
| FX Alliance Inc | 2006 | FX | Acquired by Thomson Reuters |
| Gaslog Ltd | 2003 | GLOG | Active |
| Georgetown Bancorp Inc | -99 | GTWN | Active |
| Globus Medical Inc | 2003 | GMED | Active |
| Greenway Medical Tech Inc | 1998 | GWAY | Acquired by Vitera Healthcare Solutions |
| Grupo Financiero Santander | 1991 | SANME | Active |
| GSE Holding Inc | 2004 | GSE | Bankrupt |
| Guidewire Software Inc | 2001 | GWRE | Active |
| Hamilton Bancorp Inc | 2012 | HBK | Active |
| Hi-Crush Partners LP | 2012 | HCLP | Bankrupt |
| Home Loan Servicing Solutions | 2010 | HLSS | Active |
| Homestreet Inc | 1921 | HMST | Active |
| Hometrust Bancshares Inc | -99 | HTBI | Active |
| Hyperion Therapeutics Inc | 2006 | HPTX | Acquired by Horizon Pharma. |
| Ignite Restaurant Group Inc | 1991 | IRG | Bankrupt |
| Infoblox Inc | 1999 | BLOX | Active |
| Intercept Pharmaceuticals Inc | 2002 | ICPT | Active |
| JAVELIN Mortgage Invstmnt Corp | 2012 | JMI | Inactive |
| KAYAK Software Corp | 2004 | KYAK | Acquired by Booking Holdings. |
| KYTHERA Biopharmaceuticals Inc | 2004 | KYTH | Acquired by Allergan |
| Legg Mason BW Global Income | -99 | BWG | Active |
| Lehigh Gas Partners LP | 1992 | LGP | Acquired by Energy Transfer Partners |
| LifeLock Inc | 2005 | LOCK | Acquired by NortonLifeLock |
| Linn Co LLC | 2003 | LNCO | Active |
| Luxfer Holdings PLC | 1998 | LXFR | Active |
| M/A-COM Technology Hldg | 1952 | MTSI | Active |
| Madison County Financial Inc | 2012 | MCBK | Active |
| MainStay DefinedTerm Municipal | -99 | MMD | Active |
| Manchester United PLC | 1878 | MANU | Active |
| Matador Resources Co | 1988 | MTDR | Active |
| Merrimack Pharmaceuticals Inc | 1993 | MACK | Bankrupt |
| Methes Energies International | 2007 | MEILU | Active |
| Midstates Petroleum Co Inc | 1993 | MPO | Active |
| Millennial Media Inc | 2006 | MM | Acquired by Tech Mahindra. |
| Monroe Capital Corp | 2011 | MRCC | Active |
| MPLX LP | -99 | MPLX | Active |
| MRC Global Inc | 1981 | MRC | Active |
| National Bank Holdings Corp | 2009 | NBHC | Active |
| Nationstar Mortgage Hldg Inc | 1994 | NSM | Acquired by Mr. Cooper Group Inc. |
| Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cot | 1958 | NGVC | Active |
| Northern Tier Energy LP | 2011 | NTI | Acquired by Marathon Petroleum. |
| Nuveen Intermediate Duration | 2012 | NID | Active |
| Nuveen Preferred & Income Term | -99 | JPI | Active |
| Nuveen Real Asset Income | 2012 | JRI | Active |
| Oaktree Capital Group LLC | 1995 | OAK | Active |
| OFS Capital Corp | 2001 | OFS | Active |
| Pacific Coast Oil Trust | -99 | ROYT | Active |
| Palo Alto Networks Inc | 2005 | PANW | Active |
| PBF Energy Inc | 1958 | PBF | Active |
| Peregrine Semiconductor Corp | 1990 | PSMI | Acquired by Murata Manufacturing Co. |
| Performant Financial Corp | 1976 | PFMT | Acquired by Premier Inc. |
| PetroLogistics LP | 2007 | PDH | Inactive |
| PIMCO Dynamic Income Fund | 2011 | PDI | Active |
| Proofpoint Inc | 2002 | PFPT | Acquired by Thoma Bravo |
| Proto Labs Inc | 1999 | PRLB | Active |
| Prudential Global Short | -99 | GHY | Active |
| Prudential Short Duration High | 2011 | ISD | Active |
| Qualys Inc | 1999 | QLYS | Active |
| Realogy Holdings Corp | 1906 | RLGY | Active |
| Regional Management Corp | 1987 | RM | Active |
| Regulus Therapeutics Inc | 2007 | RGLS | Active |
| Renewable Energy Group Inc | 2006 | REGI | Active |
| Restoration Hardware Hldg Inc | 1987 | RH | Active |
| Retail Ppty of Americas Inc | 2003 | RPAI | Active |
| Rexnord Corp | 1950 | RXN | Active |
| Roundy's Inc | 1872 | RNDY | Acquired by Kroger. |
| Ruckus Wireless Inc | 2004 | RKUS | Acquired by Brocade Communications Systems Inc. |
| Salient Midstream & MLP Fund | -99 | SMM | Active |
| SandRidge Mississippian | 2011 | SDR | Bankrupt |
| Seadrill Partners LLC | 2010 | SDLP | Bankrupt |
| Select Income REIT | -99 | SIR | Active |
| ServiceNow Inc | 2004 | NOW | Active |
| Shutterstock Inc | 2007 | SSTK | Active |
| Silver Bay Realty Trust Corp | -99 | SBY | Active |
| SolarCity Corp | 2006 | SCTY | Acquired by Tesla. |
| Sound Financial Bancorp Inc | 2012 | SFBC | Active |
| Southcross Energy Partners LP | -99 | SXE | Bankrupt |
| Spirit Realty Capital Inc | 2003 | SRC | Active |
| Splunk Inc | 2003 | SPLK | Acquired by Cisco |
| Sprott Physical Platinum Pall | 2012 | SPPP | Active |
| Stellus Capital Invest Corp | -99 | SCM | Active |
| Stone Harbor Emerging Markets | 2012 | EDI | Active |
| Summit Midstream Partners LP | 2009 | SMLP | Active |
| Supernus Pharmaceuticals Inc | 2005 | SUPN | Active |
| Susser Petroleum Partners LP | -99 | SUSP | Acquired by Energy Transfer Partners |
| Synacor Inc | 1998 | SYNC | Active |
| TCP Capital Corp | -99 | TCPC | Active |
| Tesaro Inc | 2010 | TSRO | Acquired by GSK (GlaxoSmithKline) |
| The Carlyle Group LP | 1987 | CG | Active |
| The WhiteWave Foods Co | 1977 | WWAV | Acquired by Danone. |
| Tilly's Inc | 1982 | TLYS | Active |
| Tortoise Energy Independence F | 2012 | NDP | Active |
| Trulia Inc | 2005 | TRLA | Acquired by Zillow |
| Tumi Holdings Inc | 1975 | TUMI | Acquired by Samsonite |
| US Silica Holdings Inc | 1901 | SLCA | Active |
| Vantiv Inc | 1970 | VNTV | Merged with Worldpay Inc. |
| Verastem Inc | 2010 | VSTM | Active |
| Vipshop Holdings Ltd | 2008 | VIPS | Active |
| Virtus Global Multi-Sector | 2011 | VGI | Active |
| Vocera Communications Inc | 2000 | VCRA | Active |
| WageWorks Inc | 2000 | WAGE | Acquired by HealthEquity |
| Wellesley Bancorp Inc | 2011 | WEBK | Active |
| Western Asset Mortgage Capital | -99 | WMC | Active |
| Western Gas Equity Partners LP | -99 | WGP | Active |
| Wheeler REIT Inc | 2011 | WHLR | Active |
| WhiteHorse Finance LLC | 2011 | WHF | Active |
| Whiting USA Trust II | 2011 | WHZ | Active |
| Workday Inc | 2005 | WDAY | Active |
| Yelp Inc | 2004 | YELP | Active |
| YY Inc | 2005 | YY | Active |
Frequently asked questions
There were approximately 165 IPOs in 2012 according to Wikipedia data, Crunchbase, Yahoo Finance, Techcrunch, and Jay R. Ritter’s data from UF Warrington College of Business. However, it’s hard to find a complete list of every company that has hit the stock exchange for the first time since the global data is fragmented. Please do your own research to confirm this figure.
As of June 2023, SolarCity (Acquired by Tesla, Inc) has a market capitalization of $725B followed by Meta Platforms with a market capitalization of $684B. Of course, this is subject to change and you should check for the latest data.
So far seven companies have been classified as bankrupt (ie. defunct). These include but are not limited to:
– Alon USA Partners LP
– GSE Holding Inc
– Hi-Crush Partners LP
– Ignite Restaurant Group Inc
– SandRidge Mississippian
– Seadrill Partners LLC
– Southcross Energy Partners LP
