IPO Door Swings Open

Topping the day's IPOs is J. Crew, a clothing retailer, with a $300 million offering. The highly anticipated deal led by Goldman Sachs(GS) and Bear Stearns(BSC) will give private equity firm Texas Pacific Group a chance to sell out of its stake, which it first bought in 1997. The firm first filed to bring the chain public back in August, but it later delayed the offering without explanation.

Other IPOs in the consumer-products and technology sector will hit the market, including window and door manufacturer PGT's $150 million deal; Web analytics firm Omniture's $88 million offering; and biotech company Replidyne's $75 million deal. The other IPOs include semiconductor company Wintegra, venture capital firm Pacesetter Capital, and restaurant chain Gordon Biersch Brewery.

Three other deals are expected to price before the end of the week, including Aventine Renewable Energy's $315 million IPO. All of the companies slated to go public have waited for months to tap the markets. Now is prime time before a market downturn really hits.

"IPOs are a luxury, so in a time of uncertainty that we had during part of May and June, IPOs weren't on the tip of everyone's tongue," Menlow says. When the market is in trouble, "IPO's are going to dissolve into relative obscurity."

Goldman Sachs' equity desk will be the busiest Tuesday, running two of the seven deals during the day. The company is also leading Aventine's offering Wednesday. Fees from the deals should help Goldman maintain its top position on the IPO league tables.

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