United Wholesale Mortgage (NYSE: UWMC) of Pontiac, Michigan went public as a company last Friday, with the company executives ringing the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange to celebrate. UWM's public listing is the result of the largest SPAC deal to date.
SPAC, or Special Purpose Acquisition Company, is a method of taking companies public that bypasses the typical initial public offering process. In a SPAC deal, a shell company is used to acquire the company before taking it public, sometimes allowing a company to go to market quicker and receive more long-term investment.
United Wholesale Mortgage was brought to market thanks to Businessman Alec Gores and the Gores Group, which sponsored the SPAC to take UWM public. Originally "Gores Holdings IV", "UWM Holdings Corp" is the result of the completed SPAC deal.
"UWM's unparalleled market position, customized technology and deep bench of talent have brought the company to the forefront of the mortgage industry," said Alec Gores, in response to the recent public offering.
United Wholesale Mortgage, currently the nation's #2 mortgage company by origination volume, is going to market as an already profitable company with a decent track record, reporting $2 billion in income and $3.1 billion in revenue for the first three quarters of 2020. This gives UWM a considerable leg up on many companies offered before it in 2020, but should also help attract more investors over time if the company is able to keep that performance going short term, and build on it long term.
Despite being the largest SPAC of last year and the company on offering being pretty well off at the time it went public, UWM Holdings' first day on the market wasn't the best. Just after markets opened on Friday, UWM was up at $12, but lost momentum quickly after open and ended the day at around $11.40. After-hours trading over the weekend has eroded a little bit more of UWM's figures from the day, and the stock has continued to slide, bringing it to its current total of $10.07. In all (including after-hours declines), UWM Holdings lost about 27% since its debut.