2021 is shaping up to be the best year for raising fresh capital on AIM since 2007.
Boutique broker Allenby Capital reported that by the end of September, £6.7bn in funds had been raised on London’s junior market through a combination of flotations or initial public offerings (IPOs) and cash calls from AIM veterans.
That amount tops the £6.0bn raised in 2020, a year in which many companies tapped the market to ensure they survived the uncertainties of the pandemic.
“New money raised in 2021 has come from a wide range of sectors. The Software & Computer Services sector has raised 20% of the market total (£515m) helped by the IPO of Big Technologies PLC (AIM:BIG) in July which raised £201.68m on admission. The company came to market at a valuation of £577mln,” observed Allenby’s Matt Butlin.
“Retail also accounted for 20% of the total. The IPO of Revolution Beauty Group PLC (AIM:REVB) in July which raised £300m being a major contributor to the Retail sector total,” he added.
The third quarter saw 26 companies join AIM, up from 20 in the second quarter and 15 in the first quarter.
Unfortunately, a slight majority of those stocks are trading below their flotation price, with Parsley Box Group PLC (AIM:MEAL) the worst of the lot having lost three-quarters of its value since floating at the end of March.
That being said, there have been some big winners, with the following being the top five.
4basebio PLC (AIM:4BB)
Floated: 17/2/2021
Gain year-to-date: +443%
Light Science Technologies Holdings PLC (AIM:LST)
Floated: 15/10/201
Gain year to date: +122%
Bens Creek
Floated: 19/10/2021
Gain year to date: +114%
Belluscura PLC (AIM:BELL)
Floated: 28/5/2021
Gain year to date: 98%
Arecor Therapeutics PLC (AIM:AREC)
Floated: 3/6/2021
Gain year to date: 69%
Average capitalisation of AIM companies continues to rise
The 61 companies that joined AIM in the first nine months of the year more than compensated for the 45 companies that delisted, 19 of which were due to takeovers. By the end of September, the number of companies listed on AIM had risen to 835, up from 819 at the end of 2020. The number of companies on AIM peaked in December 2007 at 1,694.
“With larger companies joining AIM and micro-companies delisting, all combined with generally raising share prices, the average market capitalisation of AIM companies has continued to rise. At the end of September the average market capitalisation of AIM’s 835 constituents was £178mln (median £51m),” Butlin reported.
At the end of September, 28 AIM companies were now worth more than £1bn; this has now risen to 31.
ASOS, for so long AIM’s highest-valued company, has slipped down to sixth in the rankings and with a market capitalisation of £2.56bn is barely worth more than its rival, Boohoo Group PLC (AIM:BOO), which is capitalised at £2.4bn.
The top three companies by market capitalisation are Abcam (AIM:ABC) PLC (£3.86bn); Hutchmed (China) Ltd (£.84bn) and Fevertree Drinks (AIM:FEVR) PLC (£2.93bn).