Scouting the Latest IPOs

Just like opening day at the ballpark, investing in new IPOs holds the potential for shining promise and crushing disappointment. If you simply can't bear to just cheer on your favorites from the sidelines, at least be careful about investing in this league. Many new issues swing for the fences during their first trading days, only to slump once marketing hype gives way to mundane earnings reports.

Don't commit an error by stocking your entire portfolio with rookies. Allocate just a small percentage of your risk capital to IPOs. Scout your potential phenoms carefully, and be choosy about composing your own rotisserie league. Investing with an eye for a season extending long beyond opening day will reward you with quality players capable of staying in the game. With that in mind, we offer our Foolish scouting report of the latest IPOs.

Last week's games
Several games were played last week. The players are ranked below, according to their returns from their offering price to the close of their first trading day.

Winner: Mindray Medical International

• Ticker: (NYSE:MR)
• Industry: Chinese medical-device maker
• Deal terms: 20 million ADSs, $13.50 per share
• Lead managers: Goldman Sachs and UBS
• Filed: Sept. 6
• Opening day: Sept. 26, opened at $16, closed at $17.55; 30% gain
• Bleacher banter: Priced above its expected range of $10-$12; strong demand

Runner-up: Bare Escentuals

• Ticker: (NASDAQ:BARE)
• Industry: Cosmetics manufacturer
• Deal terms: 16 million shares, $22 per share
• Lead managers: Goldman Sachs and CIBC World Markets
• Filed: June 30
• Opening day: Sept. 29, opened at $28, closed at $27.15; 23.4% gain
• Bleacher banter: Priced above its expected range of $15-$17; strong demand

Omni Financial Services

• Ticker: (NASDAQ:OFSI)
• Industry: Bank holding company
• Deal terms: 3.35 million shares, $9.50 per share
• Lead managers: Sandler O'Neill and Keefe, Bruyette & Woods
• Filed: June 14
• Opening day: Sept. 29, opened at $10, closed at $10.49; 10.4% gain
• Bleacher banter: Priced below its expected range of $10-$12; the number of shares was increased by 350,000

Shutterfly

• Ticker: (NASDAQ:SFLY)
• Industry: Online photo service provider
• Deal terms: 5.8 million shares, $15 per share
• Lead managers: JPMorgan, Piper Jaffray, and Jefferies
• Filed: June 29
• Opening day: Sept. 29, opened at $15.50, closed at $15.55; 3.7% gain
• Bleacher banter: Priced at the high end of its expected range

CBRE Realty Finance

• Ticker: (NYSE:CBF)
• Industry: Commercial REIT
• Deal terms: 9.6 million shares, $14.50 per share
• Lead managers: Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank, Citigroup, Wachovia, and JMP Securities
• Filed: March 3
• Opening day: Sept. 28, opened at $14.50, closed at $15; 3.4% gain
• Bleacher banter: Priced below its expected range of $15-$17; of the total shares sold, insiders offered 1.1 million shares, 400,000 less than anticipated

ICF International

• Ticker: (NASDAQ:ICFI)
• Industry: Government consultant
• Deal terms: 4.67 million shares, $12 per share
• Lead managers: UBS, Stifel Nicolaus, William Blair, and Jefferies
• Filed: May 11
• Opening day: Sept. 28, opened at $12, closed at $12.25; 2.1% gain
• Bleacher banter: Priced below its expected range of $14-$16

Loser: EV Energy Partners

• Ticker: (NASDAQ:EVEP)
• Industry: Oil and gas developer
• Deal terms: 3.9 million units, $20 per unit
• Lead managers: A.G. Edwards, Raymond James, Wachovia, and Oppenheimer
• Filed: May 15
• Opening day: Sept. 27, opened at $20.10, closed at $19.79; 1.1% loss
• Bleacher banter: Priced at midpoint of its expected range

On deck
Several major IPOs are slated for the coming week, including the following:

BreitBurn Energy Partners

• Proposed ticker: Nasdaq: BBEP
• Industry: Oil and gas partnership
• Proposed deal terms: Six million units, $19-$21 per unit
• Lead managers: RBC Capital Markets and Citigroup
• Filed: May 12

Danaos Corporation

• Proposed ticker: NYSE: DAC
• Industry: Greek shipping company
• Proposed deal terms: 10.3 million shares, $20-$22 per share
• Lead managers: Merrill Lynch and Citigroup
• Filed: Sept. 19

ImaRX Therapeutics

• Proposed ticker: Nasdaq: IMRX
• Industry: Biopharmaceutical
• Proposed deal terms: Five million shares, $10-$12 per share
• Lead managers: CIBC World Markets, Jefferies, and First Albany Capital
• Filed: May 19
• Note: Held over from prior week

Light Sciences Oncology

• Proposed ticker: Nasdaq: LSON
• Industry: Cancer treatment developer
• Proposed deal terms: 5.25 million shares, $14-$16 per share
• Lead managers: Cowen & Company and Wachovia
• Filed: April 24

Rosetta Genomics

• Proposed ticker: Nasdaq: ROSG
• Industry: Israeli genomic therapeutics developer
• Proposed deal terms: Three million shares, $11-$13 per share
• Lead manager: CE Unterberg Towbin
• Filed: Sept. 1

Games of the week
It may be more fun to stay on the sidelines this week and root for the Dow to continue its rise. If you're drawn to the IPO market, take a look at Breitburn Energy, another entry into the crowded new-issue energy arena, which has not been performing well lately. The California-based company holds producing and non-producing oil reserves in the Los Angeles basin and Wyoming, and plans to pay a quarterly cash dividend of $0.41 per unit.

Perhaps you've always fancied yourself a Greek shipping magnate. If so, maybe you'd like to take a cruise with Danaos, an international owner of container ships. The Athens-based company, founded in 1972, has a record of growth and profitability and intends to pay dividends of $0.44 per share.

Warming up in the bullpen
eHealth, an online health-insurance provider, announced deal terms of five million shares, offered at $10-$12 per share. The lead managers are Morgan Stanley, Merrill Lynch, Thomas Weisel, and JMP Securities.

UltraPetrol Bahamas, a marine transportation company, announced deal terms of 12.5 million shares, offered at $13-$15 per share. The lead managers are UBS Investment Bank and Bear Stearns.

Sent down to the minors
Aside from ImaRx Therapeutics pushing its offering from last week to this week, no companies postponed their offerings.

Minor-league developments
Get ready, get set . not yet! The latest filings announced during the last two weeks include:

AeroVironment

• Proposed ticker: Nasdaq: AVAV
• Industry: Unmanned aircraft systems provider
• Proposed deal terms: Not yet determined
• Lead managers: Goldman Sachs, Friedman Billings, Raymond James, and Stifel Nicolaus
• Filed: Sept. 28

Altra Holdings

• Proposed ticker: Nasdaq: AIMC
• Industry: Mechanical parts manufacturer
• Proposed deal terms: Not yet determined
• Lead managers: Merrill Lynch, Wachovia, and Jefferies
• Filed: Sept. 29

Animal Health International

• Proposed ticker: Nasdaq: AHII
• Industry: Animal-health product distributor
• Proposed deal terms: Not yet determined
• Lead managers: JPMorgan, William Blair, Piper Jaffray, and Robert Baird
• Filed: Sept. 28

CVR Energy

• Proposed ticker: Not yet determined
• Industry: Fuel refiner and fertilizer producer
• Proposed deal terms: Not yet determined
• Lead managers: Not yet determined
• Filed: Sept. 26

Mellanox Technologies

• Proposed ticker: Nasdaq: MLNX
• Industry: Israeli semiconductor firm
• Proposed deal terms: Not yet determined
• Lead managers: Credit Suisse, JPMorgan, Thomas Weisel, and Jefferies
• Filed: Sept. 28

Switch & Data

• Proposed ticker: Nasdaq: SDXC
• Industry: Interconnections service provider
• Proposed deal terms: Not yet determined
• Lead managers: Deutsche Bank and Jefferies
• Filed: Sept. 27

Disabled list
Jazz Semiconductor announced the withdrawal of its offering last week following the company's acquisition by AcquicorTechnology (AMEX:AQR).

Current champions
Meet our current 2006 champs. Among companies that went public this calendar year, these firms' percentage returns from their offer prices to last week's closing price rank them as the top five players:

Current benchwarmers
Now meet our current 2006 benchwarmers -- that's nicer to say than "losers," isn't it? Among companies that went public this calendar year, these firms' percentage returns from their offer prices to last week's closing price rank them as the bottom five players:

Groupies & fan clubs
If you don't want to declare your loyalties for specific players, but still want to enjoy the action, consider subscribing to an IPO-focused mutual fund or exchange-traded fund. Of course, do your scouting homework here, too, and make sure you read their prospectuses before buying season tickets.

Last week, the First Trust IPOX 100 (AMEX:FPX), an ETF, posted a 1.6% increase, clearly beating the IPO Plus Aftermarket (FUND:IPOSX), a mutual fund, which inched up only 0.3%. In the broader market, the Nasdaq gained 1.8% and the Russell 2000 rose 1%.

Keep reading the Fool to see how your favorite players perform as they mature!

We're publicly offering further Foolishness:

• The IPO Lock-Up Period

Sources: Renaissance Capital's IPOhome.com, SEC filings, Reuters.

MasterCard is a Motley Fool Inside Value recommendation. To scout more stocks that are selling at great prices, try Inside Value free for 30 days.

Fool contributor S.J. Caplan roots for the Cleveland Indians when her husband is watching, and for the Boston Red Sox when he leaves the room. She holds no financial position in any firms or funds mentioned here. The Fool has a disclosure policy.