Initial Public Offering

n. IPO, first offering to the public of a company's shares on the stock market

An Initial Public Offering (IPO) is the first sale of stock by a private company to the public. IPOs are often issued by smaller, younger companies seeking capital to expand, but can also be done by large privately-owned companies looking to become publicly traded.In an IPO, the issuer may obtain the assistance of an underwriting firm, which helps it determine what type of security to issue (common or preferred), best offering price and time to bring it to market.Also referred to as a "public offering".
See more at Wikipedia.org...

Noun
1. a corporation's first offer to sell stock to the public
(synonym) IPO, initial offering
(hypernym) commerce, commercialism, mercantilism

A company's first sale of stock to the public. Securities offered in an I.P.O. are often, but not always, those of young, small companies seeking outside equity capital and a public market for their stock. Investors purchasing stock in I.P.O.s generally must be prepared to accept very large risks for the possibility of large gains. I.P.O.'s by investment companies (closed-end funds ) usually contain underwriting fees which represent a load to buyers.