Investors cheered Vita Coco Co. on its public debut Thursday, as the New York-based coconut water and other beverages company’s stock opened 2.5% above its IPO price, and then extended gains. The company raised $37.5 million as it sold 2.5 million shares in its initial public offering, which the company said overnight priced at $15 a share, or below the expected range of between $18 and $21 a share. Selling shareholders sold 9.0 million shares to raise $135.0 million. The stock’s first trade on the Nasdaq was at $15.37 at 11:05 a.m. Eastern for about 1.1 million shares. With 55.50 million shares outstanding expected after the IPO, the stock’s first trade values the company at about $853.0 million. The stock has extended gains to recently trade up 7.3% at $16.10. Vita Coco went public on a day that the Renaissance IPO ETF rallied 1.0% in morning trading while the S&P 500 slipped 0.1%.
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