dc.description.abstract | In this master's thesis, we have investigated several factors that could account for the
underpricing and long-term performance of initial public offerings in Norway. We used size,
equity beta, and a PE/VC dummy variable as explanatory factors for underpricing. We
extended the Fama-French (1992) multifactor model to account for liquidity and momentum
in the long-run performance. We also utilize both cumulative abnormal returns (CAR) and
buy-and-hold returns (BHR) for the long-run analysis.
Our findings show that PE/VC-sponsored IPOs are more underpriced, but not at a statistically
significant level. Size and risk do not impact the level of underpricing at a statistically
significant level either. In terms of long-run performance, CAR exhibits underperformance of
PE/VC-sponsored IPOs, with smaller firms underperforming to a larger extent. BHR results
vary drastically over time between PE/VC and non-sponsored firms, but this seems to be a
result of market dynamics as opposed to sponsoring. None of the risk-adjusted models return
significant alphas, but value-weighted portfolios indicate slight underperformance for PE/VCsponsored
IPOs. Covid-19 also had an influence on our results, as PE/VC-sponsored IPOs
significantly outperformed non-sponsored IPOs for a short duration. Lastly, both equally- and
value-weighted portfolios’ market exposure was influenced by the pandemic. | en_US |