Archive: public market
Bitcoin and Startups: Better Revolutionary Assets
By Adam Sharp on January 29, 2021
For the last week, all eyes have been on GameStop (GME). Millions of users from forums such as Reddit’s WallStreetBets have piled into shares and call options of the wounded mall retailer, causing a short squeeze of epic proportions. GME shares rose from less than $4.00 just six months ago to more than $460 this week. Large hedge funds that were short GME…
Cannabis Stocks: High Growth at Low Prices
By Adam Sharp on January 22, 2021
Cannabis stocks had a rough 2018, 2019, and most of 2020. However, it looks like the bear market may finally be ending now. In the last two months, cannabis stocks have surged higher. The largest cannabis exchange-traded fund (ETF) by assets — the ETFMG Alternative Harvest…
The Disadvantages of a SPAC Investment
By Andy Gordon on January 20, 2021
Special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs) are enjoying their moment in the sun. They’ve shot into prominence as a way for startups to make an initial public offering (IPO) and join public stock exchanges. They offer founders unprecedented speed. And for some investors — more…
Beware Hot Tech Stocks
By Adam Sharp on December 11, 2020
As you might have heard, Airbnb had its long-awaited IPO (initial public offering) yesterday. Like a lot of hot public offerings this year, it was pure insanity. Airbnb’s IPO shares were initially priced at $68 — so that’s the price that a small group of well-connected…
Be Ready for Direct Listings
By Vin Narayanan on December 9, 2020
I’m starting to think IPOs — initial public offerings — are overrated. That’s a really weird thing for an early investor to say. Because for early investors, the IPO is the holy grail. It’s why you invest in startups. An IPO is one of the few moments in…
What to Do When a Startup Goes Public
By Andy Gordon on November 18, 2020
Every investor would love to have my dilemma. One of my First Stage Investor portfolio companies will be listing on a public stock market (also known as going public or IPO’ing) in a couple of months. I first recommended this company back in 2016…
Invest in Technological Disruption
By Adam Sharp on October 23, 2020
These are strange times, economically and socially. The future seems as uncertain as it’s ever been. At first glance, now might not appear to be a good time to invest in startups. But I truly believe it is. The primary reason I’m still investing…
Choosing Between Startups and Tech Stocks
By Adam Sharp on October 6, 2020
Today we’re going to briefly compare tech stocks with startup investments. We’ve reached a point in the public market where many tech stocks are overvalued by what I would guess is a multiple that ranges from 2x-to-10x. The valuations at this point are simply silly, as…
The 60/40 Portfolio Doesn’t Work Anymore
By Adam Sharp on September 25, 2020
It can be hard to see a bubble when you’re smack-dab in the middle of it. I think that describes our situation today. Let’s look at a few large tech stocks’ price-to-earnings (P/E) ratios. Amazon: 115 Tesla:…
The Number One Rule of Investing
By John Fanning on August 19, 2020
Note: We’re pleased to welcome John Fanning to the Early Investing family. John was the founding chairman and CEO of napster. He has an impressive track record as both a founder and startup investor. And he will be sharing his thoughts — and occasional startup recommendations — on…
The Power of the Private Market
By Adam Sharp on July 31, 2020
Two amazing American companies went public (IPO’d) in 2004 — Google (GOOG) and Domino’s Pizza (DPZ). Since then, Google (now Alphabet) has become one of the largest companies in the world. Today it’s worth more than $1 trillion. Domino’s is currently valued…
A Shift in Private Markets
By Adam Sharp on January 14, 2020
Since WeWork’s massive IPO failure, the startup investing landscape has started to change. Unprofitable unicorns are no longer getting a free pass.
Why Big Budgets Can Lead to Low Returns
By Andy Gordon on October 16, 2019
The most successful IPOs over the past decade all have one thing in common. And it’s not revenue growth.