The 10 Biggest Internet IPOs in U.S. History

A spate of Internet IPOs have made news in 2014, including the headline-grabbing initial public offerings of Alibaba Group Holding (not out yet) and King Digital Media (which went public last week).

When Alibaba confirmed that it will bring its IPO to an American exchange, analysts predicted that it could be one of the largest Internet IPOs in U.S. history, surpassing Facebook Inc.'s (Nasdaq: FB) $16 billion.

As the Internet IPO market heats up in 2014, here's a look back at the 10 biggest Internet IPOs in U.S. history...

The Biggest Internet IPOs in U.S. History

Internet IPOsFacebook Inc. (Nasdaq: FB) holds the title of largest Internet IPO in U.S. history and was the third-largest U.S. IPO ever when it went public on May 17, 2012. FB raised more than $16 billion in its initial public offering. The social media stock was initially priced at $38 per share and dropped 58% in the first three months of trading. Following the early hiccup, FB stock rebounded and is up 76% from its initial offer price.

Twitter Inc. (NYSE: TWTR) went public about 18 months following Facebook and soared 63% in its first six weeks of trading. The offer price for TWTR stock was $26 per share, but the stock opened at $44 on Nov. 6, 2013. By the end of December, the stock was over $73 per share. While Twitter holds the distinction as second-largest Internet IPO, it lags far behind Facebook, having raised $1.8 billion.

Google Inc. (Nasdaq: GOOG) made its public debut on Aug. 18, 2004, and raised nearly $1.7 billion in its IPO. At the time that made it the largest Internet IPO in U.S. history. Google began trading at $85 a share, and investors who have held the stock during its nearly 10-year run have banked gains of more than 1,000%. Today, GOOG shares trade just over $1,100 each.

While the top three on this list of Internet IPOs were well-known for their IPO size, these next seven may surprise you...

Yandex NV (Nasdaq: YNDX) does not have the U.S. name recognition of the first three companies on the list, because it's a Russian Internet search company. Yandex offered its shares at $25 each on May 23, 2011, and investors profited from a first-day gain of 55%. The YNDX IPO raised $1.3 billion. YNDX stock had a rough year following its IPO and traded below $18 per share in June of 2012. Today, YNDX stock is back over $30.

Infonet Services provided data-communications services to more than 1,000 companies when it hit the market on Dec. 15, 1999. The company raised nearly $1.1 billion in its initial public offering. Infonet is no longer a public company and operates as a subsidiary of BT Group plc (NYSE: BT). The company began operating as a private company in 2005.

Shanda Games Ltd. (Nasdaq ADR: GAME) hit the Nasdaq on Sept. 24, 2009. Shanda operates in China and is a developer of online games. In its initial public offering, GAME raised more than $1.04 billion by offering its shares at $12.50 each. In its first day of trading GAME stock dipped to $10.75 per share, and that was just the start of the stock's slide. Throughout the first half of 2013, the stock hovered around $3 per share. Today, Shanda stock trades near $6.50 per share.

Zynga Inc. (Nasdaq: ZNGA) hit the Nasdaq on Dec. 15, 2011, and raised approximately $1 billion in its initial public offering. Zynga develops and operates games that are played primarily over social media platforms like Facebook. ZNGA offered its shares for $10 and saw that price jump to almost $15 per share in the first three months of trading. The run didn't last long. ZNGA was trading near $2 less than a year after its IPO.

Giant Interactive Group Inc. (NYSE ADR: GA) is a Chinese Internet game developer and operator that focuses on massively multiplayer online role-playing games. GA began trading on the New York Stock Exchange on Oct. 31, 2007. The company raised $887 million in its IPO by selling shares for $15.50 each. That was above the company's projected range of $12 to $14 per share.

Renren Inc. (NYSE: RENN) is another Chinese company that cracks the list. Renren operated a social networking platform and went public on May 3, 2011. RENN raised $743 million in its IPO by offering shares at $14.00 each. Those who have held on to RENN stock have not fared well, as it has dropped more than 80% from its opening price.

Groupon Inc. (Nasdaq: GRPN) is an e-commerce company that connects consumers with merchants by offering online discounts. GRPN raised $700 million in its initial public offering, which took place on Nov. 3, 2011. Shares were initially priced at $20, and the stock stumbled out of the gate. In its first two weeks of trading, GRPN dropped 20%. Currently, GRPN is priced just above $8.00 per share.

Do you invest in initial public offerings? What upcoming IPOs have caught your eye? Join the conversation on twitter @moneymorning using #IPOs.

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