3 Stocks Retail Investors Are Watching For The Next Big IPO Cycle

A single filing has jolted global equity capital markets. Anthropic’s planned Nasdaq IPO, potentially raising up to US$100b and targeting a US$1.5b to US$2t valuation, concentrates attention on which banks could sit closest to that fee pool and investor flow. This article explores 3 stocks from our Global Equity Capital Markets Investment Banks screener that appear especially exposed to this AI listing wave, for better or worse.

The three banks highlighted below are only a first pass, and the full screen surfaced 12 more global equity capital markets players with equally compelling narratives that are not covered in this article. To identify and analyze the highest-conviction ideas from that broader universe, go straight to the Global Equity Capital Markets Investment Banks screener.

Investec Group (JSE:INL)

Investec Group is a specialist banking and wealth management group that fits this ECM-focused screen through its corporate and investment banking franchise in the UK and South Africa, where it helps bring companies to market and distribute equity deals to institutional and private clients.

Investec Group generates most revenue from Corporate and Investment Banking and Other in the UK and Other at £903 million and Southern Africa at £578 million, followed by Private Banking in Southern Africa at £335 million and Wealth & Investment in Southern Africa at £158 million, with a market cap of about ZAR110 billion.

For ECM investors, Investec Group matters because it blends fee-heavy investment banking with private and wealth clients that can anchor new equity issues when global deal flow picks up.

"Scaling transactional banking and operational deposit gathering in both South Africa and the U.K. is improving the funding mix away from wholesale deposits. This should lower the cost of funds and underpin net interest margins and earnings resilience."

What really shifts the story is how one less-visible pressure on capital and risk appetite ultimately shapes that earnings resilience.

That hidden pressure is exactly where the story gets interesting, and the full narrative for Investec Group shows how funding mix shifts could decouple Investec Group’s resilience from pure deal volumes.

EQT (OM:EQT)

EQT taps into the same equity capital markets cycle as the banks in this screen, but from the other side of the table, by preparing portfolio companies for IPO and M&A exits rather than underwriting them.

EQT AB is a Stockholm based private equity and venture capital group that runs global private capital and real asset funds. It earns about €1.6b from Private Capital and €1.1b from Real Assets alongside smaller Central and adjustment items, and it carries a market value of roughly SEK350.1b.

That matters in an Anthropic style IPO moment because EQT’s business model leans on raising large pools of private capital, nurturing assets through expansion, and then handing them off to public investors when market appetite opens up.

"The build out of AI infrastructure and data center exposure, evidenced by the AI Infrastructure Fund reaching a net asset value of $11.5b and the rapid capacity expansion at EdgeConneX, positions EQT to capture additional management and performance fee income linked to AI related capital demand."

The real swing factor for EQT is how a single shift in exit timing across those funds filters through fee margins and investor sentiment.

When exit timing is this pivotal, the full narrative for EQT explains in detail how EQT’s fee engine could accelerate or stall as AI themed deals move from promise to pipeline.

Moelis (MC)

Moelis sits closest to the heart of this screener’s theme, since its entire business is advising on IPOs, ECM deals and M&A, with all US$1.6b of revenue tied to investment banking advisory work and a roughly US$4.4b market cap giving it meaningful scale.

"The accelerated expansion and investment into the private capital advisory business, now supported by seven dedicated managing directors and a growing focus on GP led, LP led and co investment solutions, positions Moelis to convert its strong mandate pipeline into higher advisory fees and, in turn, support revenue growth and earnings."

What really matters now is how one shift in where that fee mix lands affects the earning power investors are quietly baking in.

If that fee mix really is the hinge, the full narrative for Moelis explains where Moelis’ advisory engine could be quietly accelerating or stalling beneath today’s headline numbers.

Seeking Alternatives Before The Crowd?

Fresh ideas tend to move first. Once momentum takes hold, prices can move quickly before many investors even notice. Scan these curated shortlists while it matters and consider them early in your research process.

• Target steady income potential and reduce guesswork by reviewing a curated lineup of higher yielding businesses in the 225 dividend fortresses before yields begin to change.
• Explore potential upside in smaller operators by scanning the hand picked 39 profitable AI stocks that aren't just burning cash while they may still be under the radar.
• Evaluate companies connected to infrastructure themes by reviewing the curated 42 power grid technology and infrastructure stocks while capital is rotating into these stories.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com