Goldman Forecasts Record US Equity Sales in 2027

Background

Goldman Sachs projects $600 billion in US equity issuance in 2027, according to a report dated October 9, 2026. This would follow a 2026 that the bank now expects to set an all-time record for equity issuance.

Breakdown of the Forecast

The 2027 projection has two main pieces. Goldman expects $175 billion to come from initial public offerings, the classic debut of a company on a public exchange. The remaining $425 billion is expected to come from follow-on offerings, convertible securities, and special purpose acquisition companies.

Artificial Intelligence and the Market

AI-related follow-on offerings have raised about $65 billion in 2026, accounting for around 45% of total US follow-on issuance this year. Goldman expects the major cloud and hyperscale companies, Amazon, Alphabet, Meta, Microsoft, and Oracle, to spend $1.2 trillion on capital expenditures in 2027.

Lock-Up Restrictions and Supply

Approximately $1.7 trillion in shares could become tradable in 2027 as lock-up restrictions expire. Goldman says this wave could potentially produce the largest increase in net publicly available US equity supply since 2000.

Implications for Investors

The first implication is opportunity. A pipeline of $175 billion in IPOs means a steady stream of new companies reaching public markets. The second implication is dilution risk, as every follow-on offering adds shares to the pool and existing holders own a slightly smaller slice of the company each time.

Balance between Supply and Absorption

Goldman's optimism rests on two pillars: buybacks and investor appetite. Buybacks shrink share counts and offset some of the new supply. If either pillar weakens, the $1.7 trillion lock-up wave and the issuance pipeline could become a much heavier load for the market to carry.