Eschewing the typical IPO song and dance in favor of a direct listing, music streamer Spotify made its debut on the New York Stock Exchange today in one of the most anticipated tech-related offerings since Snap’s IPO in March of last year.
That’s probably not the comparison Spotify would prefer, given that Snapchat’s parent company has consistently disappointed investors (and users) in the months since its IPO. And who knows? Maybe with a little luck, Spotify will mature into the “Netflix of audio” it clearly wants to be.
If first impressions count for anything, Spotify’s first day of public trading was mixed. Shares closed down about 10% from their opening price, but above the reference price first set by the NYSE.
Here’s how things shook out:
- NYSE set a reference price of $132
- Shares made their debut with an opening price of $165.90
- Shares peaked at $169 shortly after trading began
- Shares closed at $149.01
In short, Spotify is in for a very long concert, and today was just the opening number. I’ll stop with the music references now. (H/T MarketWatch)
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