Google shares make strong start
Published: 19 Aug 2004 17:30 BST
Shares in Google rose $15.01 or 17.7 percent, to open at $100 its public debut on the Nasdaq stock exchange.
The jump was a surprise, given the initial $85 price of the shares and the unusual style of the sale. IPOs are typically priced at a discount in order to give buyers a first-day "pop", but Google used a rare Dutch-auction format that aimed to maximise the money going into the company's own pockets instead.
The company, which runs the number one site for searching the Web, is trading under the symbol "GOOG".
Technology companies this year have averaged first-day gains of 14 percent with their IPOs, while first-day gains for all IPOs averaged about 10 percent. Still, a number of Wall Street observers said they expected Google's share price to trade down once it hit the market.
On Wednesday, Google set its long-awaited initial public offering at $85 a share, well below the company's original range of $108 to $135. Google and selling shareholders raised $1.66bn by floating out 19.6 million shares.
The IPO is seen as validation of Google's beloved search service and its popular advertising network. With its newfound cash hoard, Google will be armed to compete against rivals Yahoo and Microsoft in the quest to dominate Web search.
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