What’s the IPO Price? Check With the Mutual Funds

Mutual funds that invest in private tech companies are surprisingly good at predicting what a tech company will be worth when it goes public, an analysis of recent IPOs shows. The finding undercuts criticism leveled at mutual funds by tech executives, who have said the estimates bear little relation to the value of their companies.

A review of 18 tech companies that went public in the last three years, including Spotify, Snap and Twilio, shows the valuations mutual funds put on the companies in disclosures to their investors were usually within 15% of the IPO price.