Red Hat went public on August 11, 1999, achieving the eighth-biggest first-day gain in the history of Wall Street.

The stock's value soared to $75 on the first day of trading, nearly a record for first-day gain.

According to Thomson Financial, first-day gains in share prices for public offerings so far in the third quarter have averaged 26 percent.

By putting up some of their own money, the friends can capitalize on the soaring first-day gains typical of new stocks.

But those incredible first-day gains in Internet stocks can wane, too.

In other words, investors can no longer look forward to explosive first-day gains in nearly any technology-related new issue.

And some issuers, eager to pocket more of those first-day gains, wonder what services the investment bankers provide for their sky-high fees.

But the stocks that had the biggest first-day gains have, in general, proved to be disappointments thereafter.

But it does have a multibillion-dollar market capitalization, thanks to an initial public offering in December that set records for first-day gains.

On Tuesday, investors bid up the shares of a Chinese online travel agency, Ctrip.com International, to the biggest first-day gain in three years.