L.A. success amid VC gloom

This was a lousy quarter for initial public offerings staged by venture capitalists, whose success ultimately comes down to being able to exit a company at a handsome profit. Only five companies managed to go public, which is the worst showing since the second quarter of 2003. Of the five, there was a local player - an $83 million issue by North Hollywood-based IPC The Hospitalist Co., which manages the care of hospitalized patients. Venture investors include Scale Venture Partners, Bessemer Venture Partners, Morgenthaler Ventures, CB Health Ventures, and Crucible Group (a non-venture investor). A hospitalist is an acute-care physician who specializes in a patient’s hospital care from the time of admission to discharge - a pretty hot area in a nation with an aging population. The Hospitalist (they've got to do something about that name) went public in January. Stock is doing okay, not great. As for the venture capital scene in general, well, it's pretty bad. From the WSJ:

"As far as we're concerned, the capital markets are closed until further notice," said Paul Maeder, a partner with Highland Capital Partners in Lexington, Mass. He said Highland is encouraging all of its companies to be frugal and to try to become profitable soon, rather than simply burning through cash. The lackluster deal activity comes on top of the recent implosion in U.S. credit markets and stock-market troubles that have spooked investors and prompted calls for a financial-regulation overhaul. "If the world is in turmoil, people don't know what's going to happen -- everybody freezes," says Alain Harrus, a partner with Crosslink Capital in San Francisco. That makes companies and bankers less likely to complete deals, he says.