Russia minted its first Internet billionaire yesterday.
Yandex, the online search leader of Russia, hit the public markets yesterday, and its shares jumped 55 percent, showing continued investor interest in the tech sector.
Yandex was the first Russian Internet company to go public in the US, listing on the Nasdaq, where its shares went public at $25 and then rose through the day to a lofty close at $38.84 yesterday.
The company raised $1.3 billion in the largest tech IPO haul since Google raised $1.67 billion in August 2004. The stock bump left CEO Arkady Volozh with a stake worth more than $1.5 billion.
Analysts were expecting a big opening push for Yandex after last week’s impressive launch of LinkedIn, whose shares rose 109 percent on its first day.
The difference in performance showed that investors, while hot for Internet companies, were still being discerning, said Stephanie Chang, an analyst with IPO research firm Renaissance Capital.
“It shows investors are being selective despite a lot of talk about the Internet bubble,” she said.
LinkedIn edged out Yandex in the excitement factor, because it was the first US social network to go public, ahead of other hotly anticipated tech companies such as Facebook and Groupon.
Investors were also concerned with the political climate in Russia where any change in Internet rules could impact Yandex, she said.
Ryan Jacob, who runs Jacob Internet Fund, a veteran of trading in Chinese tech stocks, said that political fears were overblown, and that Yandex could navigate its mother country.
A big reason for the differences in LinkedIn and Yandex’s opening could be accounted for in the number of shares offered. Yandex floated 52 million while LinkedIn only sold 8 million.
“The share price has been a function of supply and demand,” he said.