Investors To Ride Wave Of Net IPOs In 2000

IPOs in 1999 broke every record, whether it was amount raised, prices, or returns, analysts said. In total,548 companies went public in 1999. The top 25 IPOs of the year were either technology or Internet-related companies. The sector accounted for 49.3 percent of all IPOs last year. "The fourth quarter saw an explosion in two specific categories -- hardware, or Internet plumbing companies, and business-to-business stocks, which remain dominant in the aftermarket," said Kenan Pollack of business information service Hoover_s Online. More of the same, but targeted investments, is the prevailing sentiment for this year. Internet IPOs with the most going for them will be business-to-business services, companies that enable e-commerce, and foreign e-commerce start-ups, analysts said. The most anticipated Internet IPOs are AT&T_s PCS offering of its wireless unit, which could bring in as much as $10 billion, and 3Com's Palm Pilot spinoff, Pollack said. Investors will parse out where they put their money in 2000, a trend emerging in late 1999. In 1999, the Internet was so new that people were hedging their bets by taking stakes in many different companies, some of which they would not have under more traditional business fundamentals, he said. The cost of capital is relatively cheap, but the ability to understand and value Internet business models is unclear.