Hoover's IPO Scorecard Reveals Double-Digit Percentage Increase In New Offerings For Q3 2007

For Immediate Release

AUSTIN Texas - October 9, 2007 - The number of U.S. initial public offerings (IPOs) increased 19% for Q3 2007 compared to the same quarter a year ago, as reported today by Hoover's IPO Scorecard (http://www.hoovers.com/global/ipoc/). Hoover's, Inc. (http://www.hoovers.com) is a D&B company that gives its customers a competitive edge with insightful information about industries, companies and key decision makers.

In Q3 2007, 38 companies went public on the major U.S. stock exchanges, raising $11.2 billion, compared to the same quarter in 2006 when 32 companies went public, raising $6.1 billion. The third quarter started off with strong momentum on the heels of the June 2007 IPO of The Blackstone Group, which raised $4.1 billion. But Blackstone's poor aftermarket performance (it continues to trade down from its offer price) didn't bode well for July's mega IPO of brokerage firm MF Global Ltd., which likely suffered from investor concerns about the subprime mortgage sector. MF Global priced well below its expected range; closed down on its first trading day; and continues to trade down.

Findings from Hoover's IPO Scorecard for the third quarter 2007:

• VMWare's highly anticipated IPO took place in August. The company garnered the best first-day gain of 2007 (closing up 76%), but only held the title for a short while, as the reign quickly shifted to athenahealth's September IPO, which closed up 97% on its first day.
• IPO hopefuls reacted in August to investor concerns about volatile market conditions, as the major U.S. stock indexes began to fall from recent peaks. Real estate investment trust LNR Capital Corp. withdrew its $750 million IPO plans, and Seattle coffee company Tully's Coffee postponed its IPO.
• Best First-Day Gain:athenahealth, Inc. 97%
• Worst First-Day Drop:Virtusa Corporation -17%

"Despite the expected summer doldrums for the IPO market, there are still a number of big deals on the horizon. In fact, five of the companies that filed in Q3 are attempting to raise more than $1 billion each," said Tim Walker, Hoover's industry expert. "One particular company that filed in August is Classmates Media Corporation, which runs the Classmates.com site. Investors will likely be watching this one closely, as it could be the harbinger of a rush of IPOs to come from within the social networking space."

Top Ten Best-Returning IPOs for Q3:

	Offer	Q3 Close	Return
VMware, Inc.	$29.00	$83.23	187%
ShoreTel, Inc.	$9.50	$25.84	172%
lululemon athletica inc.	$18.00	$42.30	135%
WuXi PharmaTech (Cayman) Inc.	$14.00	$31.31	124%
Mercadolibre, Inc.	$18.00	$38.20	112%
athenahealth, Inc.	$18.00	$34.39	91%
Perfect World Co., Ltd.	$16.00	$27.71	73%
Dolan Media Company	$14.50	$24.21	67%
E-House (China) Holdings Limited	$13.80	$22.79	65%
Masimo Corporation	$17.00	$26.60	56%

For additional Hoover's IPO Scorecard information, please visit: http://www.hoovers.com/global/ipoc/.

Hoover's provides continuously updated information about millions of private and public companies worldwide and analyzes the IPO market daily to produce the quarterly IPO Scorecard, a regular wrap-up of IPO activity released on the IPO Central section of Hoover's. Each IPO Scorecard includes an assortment of facts selected by Hoover's editors for those following the IPO market, including the best- and worst-performing IPOs, the biggest one-day jumps and drops in the first day of trading, and a breakdown of IPOs by industry sector.

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Hoover's, a D&B company, gives its customers a competitive edge with insightful information about industries, companies, and key decision makers. Hoover's provides this up-to-date information for sales, marketing, business development, and other professionals who need intelligence on U.S. and global companies, industries, and the people who lead them. This information, along with powerful tools to search, sort, download and integrate the content, is available through Hoover's (http://www.hoovers.com), the company's premier online service. Hoover's business information is also available through corporate intranets and distribution agreements with licensees, as well as via Hoover's books. The company is headquartered in Austin, Texas.

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