I 100% agree that the Prospectus is "The Document" and that retail investors do not read it (and sadly may "professional" asset managers too).
Unfortunately the prospectus is a one-sided story, and it will never say if the valuation is stretched or not... even the price and issue number is inserted at the last minute! Yes, I know the company is book building, but if a company out there is going to go public, a public institution should be calling BS from a valuation stand point, and amend the "Risk Factors" of the company accordingly.
My point 3 was an in-extremis case. Nevertheless FO's are a very common and inexpensive instrument, and it is a shame that the public investor doesn't have access to this BS detector.
Unfortunately the prospectus is a one-sided story, and it will never say if the valuation is stretched or not... even the price and issue number is inserted at the last minute! Yes, I know the company is book building, but if a company out there is going to go public, a public institution should be calling BS from a valuation stand point, and amend the "Risk Factors" of the company accordingly.
My point 3 was an in-extremis case. Nevertheless FO's are a very common and inexpensive instrument, and it is a shame that the public investor doesn't have access to this BS detector.