Unitree Shares Fall 45% From Peak After IPO Surge

Shares of Unitree, China's best-known humanoid robot maker, have fallen roughly 45% from their peak, erasing billions in market value just days after a record-breaking debut and sparking a debate about the country's initial public offering system. The stock steadied on Tuesday, August 25, after three consecutive days of decline.

Unitree listed on Shanghai's STAR Market on August 19 at 150.80 yuan per share. The stock surged 460% on its first day of trading, briefly valuing the company at approximately 66 billion yuan. By Monday's close, the share price had retreated to 603.08 yuan, wiping out over 200 billion yuan in market capitalization from its intraday high. Even after the selloff, shares remain about four times the IPO price.

The dramatic swing has drawn scrutiny to China's IPO mechanism, where exchanges vet candidates and guide pricing, limiting bankers' ability to adjust to high demand. Analysts say this, combined with restricted short-selling and a regulatory focus on protecting small investors, can lead to overpriced listings that face no immediate market pushback. "The distance between the offer price and the debut means either one of them must be wrong," said Dong...