The sizzling pace of the IPO market continued in July with the month producing 30 IPOs, all but one coming in the second half of the month, including nine over the last two days alone. July’s activity brings the count for the first seven months of 2014 to 162 IPOs—88% above the 86 IPOs in the first seven months of 2013 and only 16 IPOs below the tally for all of 2013.

Buoyed by the $2.88 billion IPO from Synchrony Financial, gross proceeds in July were $7.37 billion, bringing total gross proceeds for the first seven months of 2014 to $35.61 billion, or 83% above the $19.42 billion raised by IPOs in the first seven months of 2013.

The first seven months of 2014 have now seen six billion-dollar IPOs, a number equal to the full-year 2013 count and only one behind the seven billion-dollar IPOs in 2004—the high mark for this metric since the dot-com years.

While the 2014 IPO market continues to see new offerings from a diverse array of sectors, the pace of life sciences company IPOs in 2014 has been phenomenal. July produced 16 IPOs by life sciences companies, bringing the tally over the first seven months of 2014 to 69—38% above the 50 life sciences company IPOs in all of 2013 and equal to the total number of life sciences IPOs over the five-year period from 2008 to 2012. Life sciences companies have accounted for 43% of all IPOs during the first seven months of 2014, up from 28% of all IPOs for full-year 2013 and more than triple the 12% average from 2008 to 2012.

Overall, broadly-defined technology and life sciences companies have accounted for 72% of the year’s IPOs, up from 59% over the prior three-year period and representing the highest annual percentage since 2000.

The median IPO offering size declined 16% from $107.4 million in full-year 2013 to $90.5 million in the first seven months of 2014—the lowest yearly figure since the $89.3 million median offering size in 2004. The decline is in large part attributable to the smaller median offering size of life sciences company IPOs, which declined from $68.6 million for full-year 2013 to $55.0 million over the first seven months of 2014.

The median deal size for VC-backed companies in the first seven months of 2014 was $71.3 million—9% below the $78.3 million for full-year 2013 and the lowest level since the $52.5 million median in 2005. The median deal size for emerging growth companies (EGCs) in the first seven months of 2014 was $82.5 million compared to $499.5 million for other IPO companies.

As a result of the deluge of IPOs by life sciences companies, which typically have not yet generated significant revenue or reached profitability, the median annual revenue for IPO companies fell from $133.6 million in 2012 to $89.9 million in 2013 and fell further to $71.1 million in the first seven months of 2014—the lowest level since 2000. The percentage of profitable IPO companies declined from 55% in 2012 to 43% in 2013 and declined further to 34% in the first seven months of 2014, with only 14% of this year’s life sciences IPO companies being profitable.

The average IPO company in 2014 ended its first day of trading with a 15% gain—below the average first-day gain of 21% for IPOs in all of 2013 and just shy of the 16% gain in 2012, but still the fourth highest annual average gain since 2000. The IPO market, however, remains selective with positive first-day returns far from guaranteed. Year-to-date, 27% of IPOs were “broken” (closing below the offering price on the first day)—above the 22% of broken IPOs in 2013 and representing the third highest figure in the last fifteen years.

The average 2014 IPO company ended July only 10% above its offering price. At this time last year, the average 2013 IPO company had gained 37% from its offering price. Year-to-date aftermarket performance compares even less favorably when measured from first-day closing prices. While the average IPO company in the first seven months of 2013 gained 17% from its first-day closing price through the end of July, the average IPO in the first seven months of 2014 has declined 3% from its first-day closing price through the end of July. At July month-end, 41% of all 2014 IPOs were trading below their offering price and 55% of all 2014 IPOs were trading below their first-day closing price.

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

• GlobeImmune, a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing therapeutic products for cancer and infectious diseases, priced below the range and produced a first-day gain of 11%.
• iRadimed, a provider of non-magnetic intravenous infusion pump systems that are safe for use during magnetic resonance imaging procedures, priced an IPO upsized by 15% above the range and ended its first day of trading 58% above its offering price.
• CareDx, a commercial-stage company that develops, markets and delivers a diagnostic surveillance solution for heart transplant recipients to help clinicians make personalized treatment decisions throughout a patient’s lifetime, priced below the range and ended its first day of trading down 10%.
• Roka Biosciences, a molecular diagnostics company initially focused on providing advanced testing solutions for the detection of foodborne pathogens, priced below the range and ended its first day of trading flat.
• Globant, a technology services provider focused on delivering innovative software solutions that leverage emerging technologies and related market trends, priced below the range and gained 13% on its first day of trading.
• Sage Therapeutics, a biopharmaceutical company committed to developing and commercializing novel medicines to treat life-threatening, rare central nervous system disorders, where there are inadequate or no approved existing therapies, priced an IPO upsized by 25% at the top of an upwardly revised price range and jumped 67% from its offering price in first-day trading.
• TerraForm Power, a dividend growth-oriented company formed to own and operate contracted clean power generation assets acquired from SunEdison and unaffiliated third parties, priced at the high end of an upwardly revised priced range and produced a first-day gain of 32%.
• Trupanion, a direct-to-consumer monthly subscription service providing a medical insurance plan for cats and dogs throughout the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico, priced below the range and ended its first day of trading with a 14% gain.
• TubeMogul, an enterprise software company for digital branding, priced at the low end of a downwardly revised priced range and closed 64% above its offering price on its first day of trading.
• Medical Transcription Billing, a healthcare information technology company that provides a fully integrated suite of proprietary web-based solutions, together with related business services, to healthcare providers practicing in ambulatory care settings, priced at the expected price and ended its first day of trading down 14% from its offering price.
• Immune Design, a clinical-stage immunotherapy company with next-generation in vivo approaches designed to enable the body’s immune system to fight disease, priced an IPO upsized by 8% at the low end of the range and gained less than 1% in first-day trading.
• Intersect ENT, a commercial-stage drug-device company committed to improving the quality of life for patients with ear, nose and throat conditions, priced at the low end of the range and produced a first-day gain of 17%.
• Pfenex, a clinical-stage biotechnology company engaged in the development of difficult to manufacture and high-value proteins, initially focused on biosimilar therapeutics, priced below the expected price and declined 12% on its first day of trading.
• Townsquare Media, an integrated and diversified media and entertainment company that owns and operates market leading radio stations, digital and social properties and live events in small and mid-sized markets across the United States, priced below the range and ended its first day of trading 7% below its offering price.
• Advanced Drainage Systems, a manufacturer of high performance thermoplastic corrugated pipe, providing a comprehensive suite of water management products and superior drainage solutions for use in the construction and infrastructure marketplace, priced below the range and edged up less than 1% in first-day trading.
• El Pollo Loco Holdings, a differentiated and growing restaurant concept that specializes in fire-grilling citrus-marinated chicken in front of its customers, priced at the high end of the range and soared 60% on its first trading day.
• Innocoll, a global, commercial-stage specialty pharmaceutical company with late-stage development programs targeting areas of significant unmet medical need, priced an IPO upsized by 21% below the range and was flat in first-day trading.
• Ocular Therapeutix, a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of innovative therapies for diseases and conditions of the eye using its proprietary hydrogel platform technology, priced below the range and ended its first day of trading with a gain of 1%.
• Orion Engineered Carbons, a leading global producer of carbon black, priced below the range and declined 1% on its first day of trading.
• Spark Energy, an independent retail energy services company that provides residential and commercial customers in competitive markets across the United States with an alternative choice for their natural gas and electricity, priced below the range and ended its first day of trading less than 1% shy of its offering price.
• Westlake Chemical Partners, formed to operate, acquire and develop ethylene production facilities and related assets, priced above the range and gained 28% from its offering price in first-day trading.
• Avalanche Biotechnologies, a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on discovering and developing novel gene therapies to transform the lives of patients with sight-threatening ophthalmic diseases, priced an IPO upsized by 11% at the top end of an upwardly revised price range and produced a first-day gain of 65%.
• Bio Blast Pharma, a development-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the identification, licensing, acquisition, development and commercialization of drugs for rare and ultra-rare genetic diseases, priced an IPO downsized by 4% at the low end of the range and ended its first day of trading 24% below its offering price.
• Catalent, a leading global provider of advanced delivery technologies and development solutions for drugs, biologics and consumer health products, priced at the midpoint of the range and declined 2% in first-day trading.
• HealthEquity, a leader and an innovator in the high growth category of technology-enabled services platforms that empower consumers to make healthcare saving and spending decisions, priced above the range and ended its first day of trading with a gain of 26%.
• Macrocure, a regenerative medicine company focused on developing, manufacturing and commercializing novel cell therapy products to address unmet needs in the treatment of chronic and other hard-to-heal wounds, priced below the range and ended its first day of trading down 28%.
• Marinus Pharmaceuticals, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing innovative neuropsychiatric therapeutics, priced an IPO upsized by 41% below the range and was flat in first-day trading.
• Synchrony Financial, the largest provider of private label credit cards in the United States based on purchase volume and receivables, priced at the low end of the range and ended its first day of trading unchanged from its offering price.
• Loxo Oncology, a developer of targeted small molecule therapeutics for the treatment of cancer in genetically defined patient populations, priced an IPO upsized by 20% at the midpoint of the range and ended its first day of trading flat.
• Mobileye, the global leader in the design and development of software and related technologies for camera-based advanced driver assistance systems, priced an IPO upsized by 28% above an upwardly revised price range and produced a first-day gain of 48%.