Raising money through IPOs isn’t getting any easier as more companies cut and delay offerings

Companies continue to cut or delay IPOs

NEW YORK — Three companies pared down their IPOs, and another delayed its deal Wednesday, as a bumpy stock market and economic worries continue to make raising money through initial public offerings difficult.

San Francisco-based real estate investment trust Terreno Realty Corp., which had shelved its IPO in January, came to market Wednesday after raising $175 million — half of what it had originally hoped to raise. Its stock tumbled $1.35, or 6.8 percent, to close at $18.65, in its trading debut.

Another REIT, Piedmont Office Realty Trust, began trading Wednesday after cutting its IPO down to $174 million. The Johns Creek, Ga., company sold fewer shares for a lower price than it wanted. It fared better than Terreno, its stock jumping $1.10, or 7.6 percent, to close at $15.60.

Meanwhile, Graham Packaging Co., a supplier of containers for consumer products, cut the size of its IPO in half. The York, Pa., company, which is majority-owned by New York-based private equity firm Blackstone Group, now hopes to raise $175 million when it prices its offering.

“Investors have made a statement and the underwriters are reacting,” said David Menlow, who tracks IPOs at IPOfinancial. Essentially, it’s a buyers market. Banks are going to be forced to cut offering prices down until financial markets stabilize, said Josef Schuster of IPOX Capital Management.

But cutting the size of an offering isn’t always enough to entice investors. Workers’ compensation insurer Patriot RiskManagement Inc. postponed its IPO Wednesday, making it the fourth company to shelve its IPO this year, even after lowering its offering price by 27 percent.

Still, eager companies are still lining up for their chance to sell shares to the public. On Wednesday, video game rental company GameFly Inc. filed its plan to raise up to $50 million with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

And analysts remain upbeat about QuinStreet Corp., an Internet marketer that’s looking to raise $180 million.