NEW YORK -(Dow Jones)- The much-heralded initial public offering of hedge-fund manager Fortress Investment Group LLC (FIG) didn't disappoint Friday after the stock delivered the best one-day performance so far this year.
The stock closed on the New York Stock Exchange at $31 a share, up 68% from its IPO price of $18.50.
Fortress, which become the first U.S.-listed hedge-fund manager, debuted at $ 35 a share, 89% above its IPO price.
Its first-day trajectory was the biggest since digital storage system company Isilon Systems Inc. (NASDAQ-NMS:ISLN) (ISLN), which soared 78% on its first trading day on the Nasdaq Stock Market late last year.
Fortress's stellar debut capped off the busiest week in the 2007 IPO market so far this year with 13 pricings, the largest since the pre-holiday frenzy when 17 deals were priced the week of December 11.
This week's 13 deals are worth a total of $3.4 billion, based on data by Dealogic.
Fortress's IPO raised more than $634 million, making it the second largest this year behind in-theater advertising firm National CineMedia Inc. (NASDAQ-NMS:NCMI) (NCMI).
National Cinemedia, which began trading on the Nasdaq Stock Market Thursday, raised $798 million.
Fortress sold 34.29 million Class A shares at a price above its expected range of $16.50 to $18.50 set by Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE:GS) (GS), Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. (NYSE:LEH) (LEH), Banc of America Corp. (NYSE:BAC) (BAC), Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) (C) and Deutsche Bank AG (NYSE:DB) (DB).
In recent weeks, Fortress sold another 55 million class A shares to Japanese securities firm Nomura Holdings Inc. (NYSE:NMR) (NMR) for $888 million.
The deal equates to just over $16 a share, meaning Nomura has almost doubled the value of its investment.
The remaining four IPOs to make their market debut this week had mixed receptions from investors.
Shares of Optimer Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ-NMS:OPTR) (OPTR) closed at $8.50 on Friday, 21.4% higher than the initial public offering price of $7.
Optimer, which focuses on anti-infective products, initially targeting gastrointestinal infections and related diseases, opened at $7.50 a share on the Nasdaq Stock Market.
The company's debut was below the expected price range of $8 to $9, and that had been reduced from its initial $12 to $14 range, set by underwriters Piper Jaffray Cos (NYSE:PJC) . (PJC), Jefferies & Co. (NYSE:JEF) (JEF), JMP Securities and Rodman & Renshaw.
VeriChip Corp.'s (NASDAQ-NMS:CHIP) (CHIP) IPO opened and closed at a flat $6.50, in line with its initial public offering price.
The IPO price had been narrowed to $6.50 from the initial range of $6.50 to $ 8.50, set by underwriters Merriman Curhan Ford & Co., C.E.
