As the bull market has passed year number six, the market for initial public offerings (IPOs) in 2015 is about to get its true trial by fire. 24/7 Wall St. has included three major IPOs that may determine how investors treat IPOs for much of the rest of 2015. These are the companies Etsy, Party City and Virtu. If these IPOs do not live up to expectations, then investors may have to temper IPO expectations. If they are solid IPOs, then it is easy to expect that other IPOs will get crammed into the pipeline.

On a positive note, the past dozen or so IPOs have had good performance, with Tantech Holdings Ltd. (NASDAQ: TANH) doubling out of the chute, and shares of the Chinese bamboo-based charcoal products are now up 200%. Another IPO named Aduro Biotech Inc. (NASDAQ: ADRO), for its cancer immunotherapy, also doubled out of the chute on Wednesday.

However, the first quarter in IPOs was very slow, and this can be seen as a negative. The number was so small that secondary offerings outnumbered IPOs by almost nine to one. With the market at all-time highs, it might not be the best advertising placard for companies and insiders to be raising cash while the number of new companies is getting a cold shoulder.

Etsy, Party City and Virtu were all expected to price on Wednesday night or Thursday morning, which means they should all trade Thursday, if no delays are coming.

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Etsy Inc. (NASDAQ: ETSY) is an online marketplace designed for craftspeople to buy and sell handmade goods. The company plans to offer 16.7 million shares in an expected price range of $14 to $16 per share, bringing in $250 million or so, with a market cap of about $1.7 billion. Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley are leading the charge for the deal. One concern that has arisen about Etsy is that some of the company’s claims in the past may not have matched the filing figures.

Party City Holdco Inc. (NYSE: PRTY) is a party goods retailer that spans most of North America. The company has about 880 stores in the United States and Canada, and it went private during the private equity boom. The company will sell 21.9 million shares at $15 to $17 per share, raising around $350 million, and with an implied market cap of close to $1.9 billion. The bookrunners are Goldman Sachs, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Credit Suisse, Morgan Stanley, Barclays, Deutsche Bank and JPMorgan.

Virtu Financial Inc. (NASDAQ: VIRT) is the first of its kind to go public — a high-frequency trading (HFT) firm and a market maker. The HFT angle is the big focus here. After all, it never loses money (except for one day). This HFT shop is offering 16.5 million shares in an expected price range of $17 to $19, raising close to $300 million and giving an implied market cap of about $2.5 billion. The bookrunners are Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, Sandler O’Neill, BMO Capital Markets, Citi, Credit Suisse, Evercore Partners and UBS Investment Bank. Imagine never losing money trading; it would be like shooting fish in a barrel.

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At the same time, there are of course other IPOs to watch, but 24/7 Wall St has chosen these companies that are very prominent and very recognizable to investors and the public alike. If these go well, we should see an accelerated IPO calendar. If these flop, the exit doors may be a lot less accessible for a while.

Just last week, 24/7 Wall St. asked if GoDaddy Inc. (NYSE: GDDY) was an IPO in trouble. The good news is that has managed to hang above $25, but at that level, that IPO is not yet out of the woods, and investment firms seem to be holding that $25.00 level.

As we have said before, stay tuned. The balance of the IPO market for the rest of 2015 could swing for the better or for the worse on Thursday.

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