DealZone

Thursday’s IPO by satellite image maker DigitalGlobe was the fifth in row to surge in its first day of trading, rising 13 percent in another sign of the IPO market turning around. But a first day pop does not necessarily guarantee long-term success.

Just take a look at the other IPOs this year, with their respective first day pops:

- Mead Johnson, 10 percent (Feb. 11) (pediatrics nutrition)
- Changyou.com, 25 percent (April 2) (online video games)
- Bridgepoint Education Inc, 5.7 percent (April 15) (online college operator)
- Rosetta Stone, 40 percent (April 16) (language training software)

Bridgepoint is now trading below its offer price of $10.50, which was below the estimate range in the first place.

Rosetta Stone, which wowed the markets last month with the best first day performance in a year, forecast a loss earlier this week and its shares are now 31.5 percent down from their all-time high hit last week.

What a difference a day makes.

A day after college operator Bridgepoint Education Inc had to settle for a shrunken IPO, language instruction company Rosetta Stone actually priced its $112.5 million IPO above its estimate price on Wednesday, and has followed that up by rising 42 percent in its inaugural trading day Thursday. But that “pop” might be a deliberate marketing decision, rather than a major mispricing of the deal.

Much of Rosetta’s success may have had to with the small size of float– 6.25 million shares– which led analyst Ben Holmes of Morningnotes.com to say the IPO had “built it in demand.”

And any company hopes to price its deal to get a first day “pop” to reward investors for their risk-taking. IPO Boutique‘s Scott Sweet said that Rosetta Stone’s enormous first day pop — if it holds, it will be the largest since Intrepid Potash‘s 58 percent starting jump nearly a year ago — will ingratiate investors and make raising additional money through a follow on easier. (Rosetta Stone CEO Tom Adams told Reuters on Thursday the company had no plans now to raise more money.)

Well maybe not yet, but it was a good week for IPOs, with hopeful signs the market is beginning to awaken from its long slumber.

Thursday’s IPO by Chinese video games maker Changyou.com had a first day “pop” of 25 percent, the strongest debut in a year, making it the third IPO in a row, after Mead Johnson in February and Grand Canyon in November, to do well.

Two more companies, language instruction provider Rosetta Stone and Bridgepoint Education, apparently buoyed by all the advance buzz around Changyou, scheduled their IPOs for pricing in two weeks.