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Investing

5 Best IPOs of 2011

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By Trey Thoelcke Published
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5 Best IPOs of 2011

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In 2011, about 170 companies had an initial public offering (IPO) in the United States. That was down from about 190 in the previous year. Among the notable IPOs of 2011 were those of Groupon Inc. (NASDAQ: GRPN), Kinder Morgan Inc. (NYSE: KMI | KMI Price Prediction), LinkedIn, Spirit Airlines Inc. (NYSE: SAVE), Zillow Group Inc. (NYSE: Z) and Zynga. (Check out the youngest members of the Fortune 500.)

Energy infrastructure giant Kinder Morgan raised more than $2.8 billion in its IPO, but it was outdone by HCA Healthcare Inc. (NYSE: HCA), which raised almost $3.8 billion. (These 19 companies were caught manipulating the American free market.)

The stock market tumbled in August of 2011 after a surprise credit rating downgrade of U.S. sovereign debt. That and a debt crisis in Europe prompted fears of a double-dip recession. Despite the stock market’s ups and downs that year, the S&P 500 index managed to end 2011 more than 13% higher than its 2010 close.

The following are 2011’s best IPOs, ranked by how well the stocks have performed since then (as of the close on October 30; split-adjusted as indicated*). Note that Air Lease Corp. (NYSE: AL) and Spirit Airlines are also positive in that time. Angi Inc. (NASDAQ: ANGI), Kinder Morgan, Groupon and Tripadvisor Inc. (NASDAQ: TRIP) shares are trading lower than their IPO price. And LinkedIn and Zynga have been acquired since then.

HCA Healthcare

Sergey Tinyakov / Getty Images

  • Company: HCA Healthcare Inc. (NYSE: HCA)
  • Industry: Medical Care Facilities
  • IPO date: March 9, 2011
  • IPO price: $30 per share
  • Recent price: $223.34 (+689%)

Aptiv

Memorystockphoto / Getty Images

  • Company: Aptiv PLC (NYSE: APTV)
  • Industry: Auto Parts
  • IPO date: November 22, 2011
  • IPO price: $18 per share
  • Recent price: $86.39 (+471%*)

Zillow

SondraP / iStock via Getty Images

  • Company: Zillow Group Inc. (NASDAQ: ZG)
  • Industry: Internet Content & Information
  • IPO date: April 18, 2011
  • IPO price: $20 per share
  • Recent price: $38.15 (+300%*)

Apollo Global Management

pixelfit / E+ via Getty Images

  • Company: Apollo Global Management Inc. (NYSE: APO)
  • Industry: Asset Management
  • IPO date: March 29, 2011
  • IPO price: $19 per share
  • Recent price: $80.16 (+388%)

Capri

jetcityimage / Getty Images

  • Company: Capri Holdings Ltd. (NYSE: CPRI)
  • Industry: Luxury Goods
  • IPO date: December 20, 2011
  • IPO price: $20 per share
  • Recent price: $51.14 (+117%)
Photo of Trey Thoelcke
About the Author Trey Thoelcke →

Trey has been an editor and author at 24/7 Wall St. for more than a decade, where he has published thousands of articles analyzing corporate earnings, dividend stocks, short interest, insider buying, private equity, and market trends. His comprehensive coverage spans the full spectrum of financial markets, from blue-chip stalwarts to emerging growth companies.

Beyond 24/7 Wall St., Trey has created and edited financial content for Benzinga and AOL's BloggingStocks, contributing additional hundreds of articles to the investment community. He previously oversaw the 24/7 Climate Insights site, managing editorial operations and content strategy, and currently oversees and creates content for My Investing News.

Trey's editorial expertise extends across multiple publishing environments. He served as production editor at Dearborn Financial Publishing and development editor at Kaplan, where he helped shape financial education materials. Earlier in his career, he worked as a writer-producer at SVE. His freelance editing portfolio includes work for prestigious clients such as Sage Publications, Rand McNally, the Institute for Supply Management, the American Library Association, Eggplant Literary Productions, and Spiegel.

Outside of financial journalism, Trey writes fiction and has been an active member of the writing community for years, overseeing a long-running critique group and moderating workshop sessions at regional conventions. He lives with his family in an old house in the Midwest.

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