The pace of the IPO market increased in May with 21 IPOs—well above the eight in May 2012, and the largest number for the month of May since the lofty 29 in May 2007. May’s tally also represented the highest total for any month since the 24 IPOs in November 2007. For the first five months of 2013 there have now been 51 IPOs, down 16% from 61 IPOs for the comparable period in 2012.

Year to date there have been 16 life sciences IPOs, as the sector has accounted for 31% of the total number of US IPOs in the first five months of 2013.

Gross proceeds of $4.56 billion in May were the highest monthly figure since last May, when gross proceeds were buoyed by Facebook’s $16 billion IPO. May’s gross proceeds represented the seventh highest monthly total since the end of 2007.

The average 2013 IPO has produced a 16% first-day gain from its offering price—equal to the average gain for all IPOs in 2012—with nine companies seeing a first-day gain of at least 30%. Nine of this year’s IPOs—18% of the total—have been “broken” (IPOs whose stock closes below the offering price on their opening day), compared to 20% in all of 2012 and representing the lowest level since the 17% in 2003.

The median deal size in the first five months of 2013 of $104.5 million has increased 11% from the $94.3 million median for all of 2012. The IPO market remains bifurcated, with the median deal size of VC-backed companies at $79.6 million year to date—the lowest figure since 2006—while median deal size for non-VC backed companies is $232.7 million—almost 60% higher than the prior 10-year average of $146.0 million.

The median annual revenue of IPO companies has decreased 37%, from $133.6 million in 2012 to $84.3 million in 2013 to date—the lowest level since the $74.5 million in 2007. The percentage of profitable companies going public has also declined, from 55% in 2012 to 47% in 2013—the lowest level since the 26% in both 1999 and 2000. Only a third of the life sciences and technology related IPO companies in 2013 have been profitable.

While the stock market has retreated slightly from recent records highs, more than 40% of the IPOs this year are trading at least 25% above their offering price at the end of May—and 24% are trading more than 50% above their offering price—suggesting that investor appetite for IPOs remains strong. The confidential filing provisions of the JOBS Act make it harder to predict upcoming deal flow, but the 19 IPOs in June 2005 and 26 IPOs in June 2004 may be realistic targets for June 2013 IPO activity.

May IPO activity consisted of offerings by the following companies listed in the order they came to market:

• GW Pharmaceuticals, which develops and commercializes cannabinoid-based therapeutics, priced at a discount to its AIM listed shares in London on March 18, the day before the IPO announcement, and saw a first-day gain of just 2%.
• ING U.S., the American unit of retirement, investment and insurance company ING, priced below the range, but was still the second largest IPO of the year. The company ended its first day of trading up 7%.
• Insys Therapeutics, a commercial stage specialty pharmaceutical company with products to treat cancer pain and chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting, priced at the low end of an already decreased range but gained 19% in first-day trading.
• Cyprus-based QIWI, which provides payment services across physical kiosks, online and mobile channels mainly in Russia, priced a slightly upsized IPO at the midpoint of the range and inched up 0.5% on its first trading day.
• Cyan, which provides next generation packet-optical transport systems for software-defined networks, priced at the midpoint of the range and opened below its offering price before climbing back to end the first day of trading 1% above its offering price.
• PennyMac Financial Services, which originates, acquires and services residential mortgage loans, priced at the midpoint of the range and saw a first-day gain of 6%.
• Quintiles Transnational Holdings, the world’s largest provider of biopharmaceutical development services and commercial outsourcing services, priced an IPO upsized by 20% at the high end of the range —resulting in the third largest IPO of 2013—and still managed a first-day gain of 5%.
• Biopharmaceutical company Receptos, which is focused on discovering, developing and commercializing innovative therapeutics in immune disorders, priced an IPO upsized by almost 11% at the low end of the range and ended its first day of trading flat.
• Ambit Biosciences, which is developing small molecule therapeutics for the treatment of acute myeloid leukemia, priced below the range but maintained the original target for gross proceeds. The company ended its first day of trading down 8%.
• Tokyo based UBIC, a provider of Asian-language eDiscovery solutions and services, priced within the range and saw a first-day loss of 3%.
• William Lyon Homes, the fourth IPO from homebuilders or building construction companies this year, priced above the range and ended its first day of trading up 2%.
• Marketo, provider of a cloud-based marketing software platform, priced at the high end of the range and enjoyed a first-day gain of 78%, eclipsing the previous best first-day gain of 2013 by Xoom and the best first-day gain since Splunk’s 109% “moonshot” in April 2012 (an IPO that doubles in price on its opening day).
• Tableau Software, which provides interactive data visualization software, priced an upsized IPO above an upwardly revised range the same day as Marketo. Tableau ended its first day of trading up 64%—just the second time since 2000 (and the first time since December 2010) that two companies produced first-day gains of more than 50% on the same day.
• Israeli firm Alcobra, a biopharmaceutical company developing a non-stimulant ADHD treatment, priced an upsized IPO below the range and declined 6% in first-day trading.
• Portola Pharmaceuticals, which is focused on the development and commercialization of novel therapeutics in the areas of thrombosis and other hematologic disorders, priced an IPO upsized by 22% at the midpoint of the range and ended its first day of trading with a 4% gain.
• ChannelAdvisor, a leading provider of software-as-a-service solutions to manage sales across multiple online channels, priced at the high end of the range and enjoyed a first-day gain of 32%.
• Constellium, a private equity–backed manufacturer of semi-fabricated aluminum products, priced below the range and ended its first day of trading down 3%.
• Global Brass and Copper Holdings, a value-added converter, fabricator and distributor of specialized brass and copper products, priced at the low end of a downwardly revised range and climbed 23% in first-day trading.
• Private equity–backed exterior building products company Ply Gem Holdings, continuing the steady flow of IPOs by home and construction related companies, priced above the range and saw a 11% first-day gain.
• Epizyme, a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company developing personalized therapeutics for patients with genetically defined cancers, priced an IPO upsized by 20% at the top end of the range and soared 53% in first-day trading—the best opening-day performance for a biotech company since Eyetech Pharmaceuticals in January 2004.
• Kamada, which is focused on orphan drugs and plasma-derived protein therapeutics, was the second Israel-based biopharmaceutical of the month. The company priced below the range but ended its first day of trading up 9%.