Shares of Swedish oat milk brand Oatly soared nearly 30 percent during the company’s public market debut Thursday.
The stock began trading around 11:45 a.m. ET at $22.12, about 30 percent above the IPO price, giving the company a valuation of $13.1 billion. The Malmo, Sweden-based company is trading on the Nasdaq under the ticker “OTLY.”
The oat-milk maker priced its IPO on Wednesday evening at $17 per share, at the top of its indicated range, giving it a valuation of $10 billion and raising over $1.4 billion from the sale of new and existing equity.
The company sells a milk substitute made from oats. It’s grown rapidly since its US debut five years ago, riding a wave of interest in plant-based foods, particularly among health- and sustainability-conscious millennials and Gen Z consumers.
The Swedish oat milk producer has grown rapidly since its arrive in the US five years ago. TT NEWS AGENCY/AFP via Getty Ima
As of the end of 2020, Oatly products were sold in about 8,500 retail shops and nearly 10,000 coffee shops in the US, according to the company’s regulatory filings.
The market for plant-based alternatives is competitive, with start-ups like Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods