Restaurant chain Noodles & Company (NASDAQ: NDLS) held its initial public offering (IPO) today, selling 5.4 million shares at $18 a share. The stock has since doubled, the first IPO of the year to double on its opening day.
The company priced the offering above an expected range of $15 to $17 a share, and anticipate proceeds of $96.4 million. Lead underwriters for the offering were Morgan Stanley and UBS and they have been granted an option on an additional 804,000 shares.
The fast-casual restaurant chain owns 343 stores and franchises in 26 states and the District of Columbia and the company’s management thinks it can expand to 2,500 stores in 15 or 20 years. The company posted revenue of $300 million in 2012 with profits of $16 million.
Catterton Partners owned 45% of the company prior to the IPO and now owns about 36.7%. An investment company owned by Canada’s Public Sector Pension Investment Board owned another 45% before the IPO and now holds 36.3%.
Noodles & Co. will compete in the same space as Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (NYSE: CMG) and privately held P.F. Chang.
Shares are trading at $36.34 in the mid-afternoon, up 101% from the $18 offering price.
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