IPO demand jumps as three more hit the market

The Empire State Building may not be the world's tallest anymore, but it still helped set a new record Wednesday.

Following the initial public offerings of three companies, including the operator of the Empire State Building, the IPO market has officially shaken off the malaise of the financial crisis of 2007 and 2008.

Shares of retailer Burlington Stores, real estate firm ReMax and Empire State Realty Trust saw their initial public offerings start trading Wednesday, and they gained 47%, 23% and 1%, respectively, on their first days.

But more important, with the IPOs of these three companies, there have been 155 companies selling shares to the public for the first time this year. That's a noteworthy accomplishment in that it's the first sign of the moribund IPO market coming back to life since the financial crisis all but killed interest in deals.

And that's not even including the much-anticipated IPO of online message service Twitter, expected to file its prospectus with the public in weeks, if not days.

TWITTER IPO: Social media giant poised to make IPO filing public

At 155, the number of IPOs this year is up 52% from the same point last year, says Renaissance Capital.

There haven't been this many companies going public in a year since 2007, when there were 213, just before the financial crisis decimated the plans of companies to sell stock to the public.

The amount of money raised by companies this year so far, $33.3 billion, is down 6.2% from this point last year, Renaissance says. But that's actually a healthy sign, as the IPO market is reopening to smaller companies looking to grow and expand, the lifeblood of a vibrant IPO market. For years, investors shied away from smaller companies to focus on large, old and more established companies.