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What podcasters are saying about IPOs, M&A & deal activity
Summary
In the past 30 days, 33 speakers on 24 finance podcasts discussed IPOs, M&A & deal activity in 41 views. Chorus has followed IPOs, M&A & deal activity since October 1, 2026.
Who talks about it most
- Jim Cramer · 6
- Ted Mortonson · 3
- Adena Friedman · 2
- Danielle DiMartino Booth · 1
- Rory O'Driscoll · 1
- Ariana Salvatore · 1
- Larry McDonald · 1
- Mandeep Singh · 1
- Ed Elson · 1
- Scott Galloway · 1
The latest views
Newest first. Every quote is checked against the episode's transcript.
Danielle DiMartino Booth · QI Research
A $100B IPO pipeline will drain liquidity before year-end, offsetting the usual post-midterm stock rally.
She notes that stocks historically rally after midterm elections, but a $100 billion IPO is still coming down the pipeline. That supply will pull liquidity out of the system. Her view is that year-end liquidity will determine the market's direction, and the IPO supply works against the seasonal tailwind into year-end.
“there's still this $100,000,000,000 IPO coming down the pipeline, which is going to take liquidity out of the system.”at 8:24
The Julia La Roche Show: #426 Danielle DiMartino Booth: Warsh Could Slam the Economy Into Recession — Fed Day Reaction ·
Rory O'Driscoll · Scale Venture Partners
IPO activity is weak as everyone waits for a trillion-dollar listing, so platforms should fund privates now.
Despite a market where only a few dozen tech and AI stocks are working, there have not been many IPOs. Everyone is waiting for a trillion-dollar listing, so the whole world is in suspended animation. He concludes it is a perfect time for big platforms to put large sums into private companies, because demand for capital there is strong and the public exit path is blocked.
“And then despite that, there haven't been a ton of IPOs because everyone's been waiting for this trillion dollar thing, and the whole world is in suspended animation.”at 54:21
20VC: 20VC: Anthropic Files S1 Ahead of $2TRN IPO | Instinct's Rumoured $30 Billion Fundraise | Microsoft Laysoff 27,000 While Meta Taps Equity Markets for $95 Billion Capex Spending Spree ·
Ariana Salvatore · Morgan Stanley
Deregulation will pull M&A announcements forward ahead of a possibly stricter regime after the next election.
Salvatore expects a pull-forward in deal announcements. Companies will rush to announce mergers before a potentially more restrictive regime after the next presidential election. She sees early signs of this in recent corporate maneuvering, which fits her view that deregulation continues.
“you might see the inverse effect of something like m and a comes up because there is, in our view, going to be a bit of a pull forward in terms of announcements ahead of a new potentially more restrictive regime after the next presidential election.”at 42:17
CNBC Closing Bell: Markets Brace for the Fed as Earnings Roll In 10/27/26 ·
Larry McDonald · The Bear Traps Report
Billionaires are dumping mega AI IPO shares, SpaceX, Anthropic and OpenAI, on retail via index inclusion.
He says SpaceX, Anthropic and OpenAI were worth about $360B three years ago and are now worth around $5.1T, and that they will be placed into the Nasdaq 100 and eventually the S&P 500. He argues that insiders are cashing out into retail and 401(k) investors, who become the exit liquidity for private money. He compares Anthropic's expected IPO valuation of about $2T with Google's IPO and calls it a sign of excess.
“This is the greatest cash out from billionaires in Silicon Valley we've ever seen, and they're dumping the shares into the laps of mister and missus Joe [Lunchpail], average investor...”at 4:10
Wealthion: Larry McDonald: S&P 500 Could Crash 30% Over the Next Year ·
Jim Cramer · CNBC
Heavy IPO and equity supply could drain the market and push stocks lower, as in 2000 and 2022.
Cramer argues the stock market is being flooded with new supply. Renaissance Capital counts over $148B of IPO proceeds so far this year, plus large follow-on and secondary offerings from Meta, Alphabet, Oracle, Intel and SK Hynix, and hundreds of billions in bond deals. He compares this with 2022, which followed a year of about $142B in IPO proceeds, and with 2000, when too much supply overwhelmed demand. He notes there are few buybacks and a queue of new deals. He cites investors using margin to buy a handful of semiconductor stocks as a sign of excess debt. He says he is not calling a top but does not like what he sees, and that the market needs more stock retired through takeovers or buybacks.
“I've always contended that the stock market driven by supply and demand goes higher when there's not much supply and there's stocks being taken out, and it goes lower when there's an endless amount of new supply.”at 6:43
Mad Money with Jim Cramer: Mad Money w/ Jim Cramer 10/26/26 ·
Mandeep Singh · Bloomberg Intelligence
Only scaled firms with improving margins can run IPOs now; subscale issuers are pulling back.
Singh says the backdrop for IPOs is not as strong as it was three or four months ago, though SpaceX timed its deal better. He argues that a company needs both scale and top-line growth with improving margins to go to market now. Subscale players without margin improvement are pulling back, as seen with some smaller names he says were not improving margins. He sees Anthropic as able to go ahead because of its scale.
“If you are a subscale player where you don't have an improving margin story along with top line growth, that's when you pull back your IPO. And we saw that with a few of the smaller names where I bet you the margins weren't really improving.”at 8:38
Bloomberg Talks: Instant Reaction: Anthropic Files for IPO ·
Scott Galloway · NYU Stern School of Business
Most acquisitions destroy shareholder value, and CEO pay incentives push leaders toward empire-building deals.
Galloway argues CEO compensation is set by boards that favour acquisitions, creating an incentive to do deals even when they make no sense. Each CEO hopes for a transformative deal like Zuckerberg's Instagram purchase. He says about seven to 10 acquisitions end up destroying shareholder value. He applies this to the Tesla-SpaceX deal, where the special committees may be building an empire.
“CEOs have a tendency to want to do acquisitions... The reality is about seven to 10 acquisitions end up destroying shareholder value.”at 34:40
Prof G Markets: The $3.5T Bailout: Elon's Plan To Merge Tesla And SpaceX ·
Ed Elson · Prof G Media
AI data-centre IPOs are performing badly, with one falling over 30% on its first day
Elson points to several AI data-centre IPOs. One was cancelled, another was delayed, and a recently listed data-centre company fell more than 30% on day one. He calls this a canary in the coal mine for AI data-centre companies going public, arguing they do not do well after listing. He links it to the wider pullback in data-centre listings since September.
“which is another data center company, they went public, and immediately the stock just craters more than 30% on day one, which kind of is a canary in the coal mine for what happens when AI data center companies go public. They don't do very well.”at 51:51
Prof G Markets: The $3.5T Bailout: Elon's Plan To Merge Tesla And SpaceX ·
Scott Ramsower · Teacher Retirement System of Texas
Public IPOs are weak PE exits; LPs are not encouraging GPs to exit that way since liquidity is partial.
Outside a couple of large growth-capital names, Scott has seen little public market activity for PE exits. Texas Teachers is not encouraging its GPs to exit through the public markets, because it can be hard for them to fully exit. He calls an IPO step one of a multistep exit, since full liquidity is rarely available on day one. This combined with the CV and zombie fund dynamics is why he expects the exit bottleneck to persist.
“Outside of a couple large scale growth capital names, we haven't seen a lot of activity in the public markets. We're not encouraging our GPs to go and exit through the public markets because it can often be hard for them to fully exit. I call an IPO step one of a multistep exit because rarely can you get full liquidity on day one.”at 32:30
Capital Allocators: Continuation Vehicles from the LP Seat – Scott Ramsower (EP.523) ·
Ted Mortonson · Baird
Small-cap point-solution tech firms lack free cash flow and will be absorbed in a large M&A cycle.
He is most worried about small-cap tech names. They lack free cash flow, sales and marketing, and engineers. He expects a pretty massive M&A cycle as point-solution companies, especially in security, become parts of bigger companies with free cash flow. He thinks application software will see a lot of M&A in the next couple of years.
“Where I have the biggest worry is more on the small cap names. They don't have the free cash flow... I think you're gonna see a pretty massive m and a cycle on taking really point solutions on the small cap side.”at 27:32
Excess Returns: Baird's Tech Strategist Says This Isn't 2000. So Why Is He Warning Against Buying the Dip? ·
Ted Mortonson · Baird
If many AI IPOs hit within a quarter or two, funds will have to sell holdings to make room.
Portfolio managers keep cash below 4%, so they have little room. If 20 large IPOs, including Anthropic and OpenAI, come together within a quarter or two, managers will be forced to sell something they love to fund them. He notes five major IPOs have been postponed, including Aura and Freemiss. He says the market will get through it, but capital is limited, as it was in 2000.
“So the only problem is if they all come at the same time or in the same time frame, let's say in a quarter or two, they're generally gonna have to sell something they love to make room for some of these next generation companies.”at 36:41
Excess Returns: Baird's Tech Strategist Says This Isn't 2000. So Why Is He Warning Against Buying the Dip? ·
Jack Forehand · Validea Capital Management
Today's IPO wave is a few massive companies, unlike 2000's flood of listings.
Jack compares the late-1990s IPO market with today's. Back then IPOs came out in large volume with many companies. Now the offerings involve very large companies, so the wave is about the size of the assets rather than the number of companies. He presents this as a different dynamic from 2000.
“Obviously, IPOs were coming out left and right, but also on this side, we've got such massive size to the IPOs. So it's like a very different thing.”at 37:41
Excess Returns: Baird's Tech Strategist Says This Isn't 2000. So Why Is He Warning Against Buying the Dip? ·
Ted Mortonson · Baird
Large AI-company offerings will concentrate in a few big funds and strain capital; smaller funds get scraps.
Ted argues that the large private tech companies heading to public markets have been private for almost a decade with huge funding rounds, so when the IPO window opens they will absorb a meaningful amount of capital (there is a limitation to how much capital these companies have). Portfolio managers will focus on scale, free cash flow and secular advantage. They will not bail out VCs or private equity, so offerings will be concentrated, with allocations going to 20 to 30 funds. Large technology funds with expertise will be over-allocated, while smaller funds get scraps.
“you're gonna see all of these offerings, at least in the next phase when the window definitely opens up wide, is these are gonna be very concentrated with allocations probably to 20, 30 funds, and the rest are gonna get scraps.”at 39:03
Excess Returns: Baird's Tech Strategist Says This Isn't 2000. So Why Is He Warning Against Buying the Dip? ·
Lance Roberts · RIA Advisors
Anthropic and OpenAI may delay IPOs until market sentiment improves, since issuers want the highest price.
Roberts compares the situation to selling a house: if buyers offer less after rates spike and sentiment sours, many owners pull the listing rather than sell at a discount. He says companies going public sell shares at the highest price they can get, and that timing an IPO matters as much as the company itself. Given the drop in expected valuations for Anthropic and OpenAI, he would not be surprised if both delayed their IPOs until sentiment is better.
“I wouldn't be surprised if we don't start to see Anthropic and OpenAI, etcetera, delay their IPOs until the market environment sentiment wise is more favorable.”at 21:03
Thoughtful Money: Compressed Market Poised To Break Hard: The Key Question Is Which Way? | Lance Roberts ·
Jim Cramer · CNBC
IPO waves flood the market with supply, and the cycle ends with exuberance turning to hostility and a broad selloff.
Cramer says a flood of new IPOs initially pushes many deals higher, but the new stock supply ultimately drags the market down. Investors' enthusiasm for hot IPOs turns to hostility when deals attract less interest, and then the whole market, not just IPOs, gets slammed. He cites 2020 and 2021, when roughly 400 traditional IPOs and 200 SPAC mergers came to market, with about 600 companies listing in 2021. He says the Fed's tougher talk on raising rates in November 2021 caused the new issues to be eviscerated through 2022.
“That's why you need to be [extra] wary of the IPO cycle. ... they're flooding the market with new stock supply. That supply ultimately drags us down.”at 32:27
Mad Money with Jim Cramer: Mad Money w/ Jim Cramer 10/23/26 ·
Jim Cramer · CNBC
A wave of IPO supply tends to weigh on the stock market, so investors should be cautious when deals come hot and heavy.
Cramer says new supply is one surefire way to wound a bull market. He points to 2021's IPO and SPAC mania, after which hundreds of low-quality new issues were eviscerated in 2022 and many later went bankrupt. He explains the mechanics: active managers who want to buy big IPOs often have to sell existing holdings to raise cash, and index funds, which take most new money, cannot buy IPOs. So heavy issuance drains existing stocks, and the cycle tends to start strong, generate euphoria, then burn out as supply weighs on the market. Caution is warranted when a big wave of IPOs arrives.
“That's why I came out and warned you about the dangers of the IPO mania in late twenty twenty one. I said there was one surefire way to wound a bull market, and that's by flooding it with lots of supply,”at 36:42
Mad Money with Jim Cramer: Mad Money w/ Jim Cramer 10/23/26 ·
Jason Greenberg · Jefferies
IPO window is resetting: poor post-IPO returns, rich valuations and higher rates deter listings, but companies will still come.
Greenberg explains why companies are holding back IPOs even with markets near highs. Many recent IPOs have not made money for buyers, so investors wait. Valuations for AI-related companies have run ahead of what investors will pay, and a large amount of supply is chasing limited capital. Higher capital costs, with the 10-year yield and inflation up, add to the reset. He says this changes the pace, not the number of companies. Passive index funds now take about 40% of demand for public stocks and mostly track large companies. Reporting, litigation and disclosure costs of being public also make small companies less likely to list, while private markets have plenty of money.
“if you're not going to make money on an IPO, you'll stand back and wait... I think to some degree valuations have gotten ahead of themselves in terms of what people are asking. ... I think all of those together are making it a little bit of a reset, but I don't think that changes the number of companies.”at 5:44
CNBC Power Lunch: Oil Hits 5-Month High, iPhone Duo Launch, Weekend Sports Slate 10/23/26 ·
Jason Snipe · Odyssey Capital Advisors
AI companies are already crowding each other out of the IPO window as they chase the same capital.
He says there is only so much ability to raise capital. He sees crowding-out effects already in the upcoming IPO window, and SpaceX's spending spooked the market. Scott Wapner ties this to Meta's filing about trying to reach market before others. Snipe says haves and have-nots will emerge and the haves will get capital, but at what price.
“You're already hearing crowding out effects in the IPO window that's coming up”at 18:07
CNBC Halftime Report: Shifting Sentiment and Sliding Semis: The Investment Committee's Strategy 10/23/26 ·
Adena Friedman · Nasdaq, Inc.
AI is driving strong healthcare IPO demand by shortening time-to-value for biotechs.
Healthcare IPOs have been strong this year after a few tougher years. Friedman attributes part of this to AI: it could speed up clinical trials, drug discovery and paperwork for biotechs. That shortens time-to-value for investors, which she says is driving demand for healthcare IPOs.
“I think part of that is AI... they're going be able to hopefully speed up trials, speed up drug discovery, speed up paperwork... I think that's really driving demand for healthcare IPOs.”at 19:09
Squawk Pod (CNBC Squawk Box): The Nasdaq’s AI IPOs, Tesla’s Q3, Gloomy Economic Sentiment 10/22/26 ·
Adena Friedman · Nasdaq, Inc.
IPO window is less open after higher interest rates raised the cost of capital.
The IPO environment has softened a little in the last few weeks. Friedman links this to the cost of capital: higher interest rates have made the environment softer. Investors are taking longer to build models that account for unpredictable factors. She describes the window as less open than before, not closing.
“there are also cost of capital matters, and so I think that having interest rates go up a bit has made it a little bit of a softer environment... I look at it as a little less open than it was before.”at 19:28
Squawk Pod (CNBC Squawk Box): The Nasdaq’s AI IPOs, Tesla’s Q3, Gloomy Economic Sentiment 10/22/26 ·
Jon Gray · Blackstone
US IPO volume is up threefold this year, but choppy markets have narrowed the window and delayed deals.
Gray says the year-to-date US IPO volume is up roughly 3.5 times, so the call that 2026 would be the year of the IPO is coming true on paper. Blackstone brought five companies public, three in the US and two in India. He says delays have narrowed the window because of choppy markets and the geopolitical backdrop. He expects the window to stay tougher until geopolitical conditions stabilize. He says the IPO window will reopen once stability returns and earnings strength shows through in public and private markets. If Anthropic's IPO completes, total volume would rival 2021.
“Year to date, I think IPO volume in The US is up three and a half fold. If anthropic gets done, the total volume will rival 2021.”at 12:00
Bloomberg Talks: Blackstone President & COO Jon Gray Talks AI Demand ·
Jim Cramer · CNBC
Post-IPO analyst enthusiasm and hype make opening prices unreliable; buy only after a big drop.
Cramer says that after an IPO, analysts tend to say positive things and lose their critical faculties. He argues that IPO openings are often controlled by overly enthusiastic buyers. His rule is that if a stock is down substantially from its opening price, that is how to look at it. He would only consider a company with real earnings, a good balance sheet, and a premium growth rate that trades at a premium to the market.
“after an IPO, you really have to be very careful because what you've got are a lot of analysts who kind of wanna say positive things, and they tend to lose their critical faculties.”at 9:27
Mad Money with Jim Cramer: Mad Money w/ Jim Cramer 10/21/26 ·
David Bahnsen · The Bahnsen Group
Most CEO-led M&A is vanity projects that destroy capital, with a few synergistic exceptions.
When companies cannot reinvest cash at high returns, CEOs often turn to M&A. Bahnsen argues most deals are vanity projects and capital-destructive, while acknowledging a few have been synergistic. He contrasts this with the high return on equity he sees from great dividend growers.
“CEOs are notorious for M and A. And I would suggest that most M and A has served to be vanity projects and capital destructive.”at 6:33
Masters in Business: At The Money: Can Dividend Investing Give You Yield AND Growth? ·
Anish Shah · Morgan Stanley
M&A resurgence is real: sponsor-owned assets are being sold to investment grade strategics at agreed valuations.
The M&A pickup is driven by a meeting of the minds on valuation. For the first time in years, large sponsor-owned private equity assets are coming to market and being acquired by investment grade corporate strategics. Acquirers are borrowing at higher rates than a few years ago but are paying what they see as appropriate valuations for assets that make long-term strategic sense. The deals also repay multi-billion dollar sponsor debt, recycling credit and freeing capacity in leveraged finance markets.
“For the first time in many years, we're seeing large scaled sponsor private equity owned assets come to market and be acquired by an investment grade corporate strategic. ... they're able to acquire these assets at an appropriate valuation and it makes long term strategic sense.”at 8:11
Thoughts on the Market (Morgan Stanley): Inside the Biggest Bond Boom in Years ·
Paul Hsiao · UBS Chief Investment Office, Global Wealth Management
AI IPOs are waiting for calmer rates; IPO and M&A activity already accelerating despite high rates.
Higher rates compressed valuations, so a gap has opened between the prices bigger IPOs expected and what the market is pricing. Several recent high-profile IPOs have had mixed performance. AI companies are taking a wait-and-see approach until rates calm, and conditions may improve with a more dovish Fed into Q4. Even so, 2026 has been a very strong IPO year despite high rates. Because the market is supply-driven and less rate-sensitive, IPO activity is accelerating from last year and M&A activity is also rising.
“they're really taking a wait and see mode. I think they might wait until the situation with rates have calmed down a bit.”at 8:16
UBS On-Air: Top of the Morning: CEO Macro Briefing Book Q4 update ·
Christian Munafo · VanEck
The IPO window is far from open, with exit value concentrated in a few companies.
US listed companies have roughly halved over recent decades while private companies have soared to 50,000 to 60,000, and US venture companies hold about $11 trillion in total value. Exits have not been enough to return capital, creating a TVPI glut. Historic DPI is low, after COVID and the 2022 to 2024 rate hikes. Most exit value has come from a few companies, such as SpaceX, so the IPO window is far from open.
“The IPO window, in our view, is far from open.”at 30:52
Thoughtful Money: The Big Squeeze: High Bond Yields Now Becoming A Problem For Stocks | Jan van Eck ·
Max Wiethe · Monetary Matters Network
The AI IPO rush is insider-driven and has backfired, and oversubscription doesn't guarantee gains.
Max argues that VCs and early holders had an incentive to rush AI IPOs such as SpaceX and Anthropic, after a strong year for venture returns. He says they were talking their book to lock in wins. The rush has backfired for VCs, and the Korean IPO that fell 30% despite being oversubscribed about 389 times shows that oversubscription does not mean the stock will trade up after listing. He says the Anthropic IPO's oversubscription would not guarantee gains either.
“there was a lot of incentive to try and, like, let's just get all of these IPOs done, and that's why we got those crazy numbers. And and it has backfired.”at 25:20
Monetary Matters: Is The AI Trade Over? | Jack & Max on Panic in AI Credit, SpaceX Earnings, and Semis ·
Jim Cramer · CNBC
SPACs were used to list hyped EV companies on made-up forecasts; investors should avoid SPACs entirely.
In 2020 and 2021 many electric-vehicle and EV-adjacent startups went public by merging with SPACs, using forecasts projected many years out that Cramer calls made up. He argues a real IPO with such projections could land someone in prison, and that a bank would refuse such a loan. Wall Street allowed the deals because bankers wanted fees, and the SEC was asleep at the wheel. The most egregious SPAC operators were prosecuted only after they had cost investors fortunes. SPACs are still legal, and he concludes they are terrible investing.
“And often, their only watchwords are that the sucker is born every minute. This is just terrible investing. I don't want you in any SPAC, any SPAC.”at 39:39
Mad Money with Jim Cramer: Mad Money w/ Jim Cramer 10/20/26 ·
Jim Cramer · CNBC
Takeover bids go to strong companies with cheap stocks, so speculating on takeovers of weak firms is a mistake.
Cramer argues that bad companies rarely get acquired, because few CEOs can turn a bad company around, so buyers come for good businesses with cheap stocks. Owners of poor-fundamental companies who hope for a bid can wait forever while the stock keeps falling and may sell for less than they paid. He allows speculating on takeovers only when the company is well run, since a good business can win without a deal and its dips can be bought.
“Funny thing about bad companies, they rarely get bids. In reality, what gets acquired are great companies with cheap stocks, not crummy companies with stocks that seem cheap, but are in fact pretty expensive.”at 44:38
Mad Money with Jim Cramer: Mad Money w/ Jim Cramer 10/20/26 ·
John Mowrey · NFJ Investment Group
Investor appetite for big IPOs may be richer than assumed, given SpaceX's large market-cap debut
Mowrey points to the market cap SpaceX commanded in its IPO relative to its earnings power. He says the market absorbed a very large IPO recently, which suggests investor appetite may be stronger than people assume. He adds that Anthropic will be scrutinised heavily as the first big AI IPO, and that the return-on-capital threshold for AI investment is rising.
“I think the market appetite might be a little bit richer than maybe we're, you know, all assuming to some degree because it absorbed, you know, a very large IPO recently.”at 11:11
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