Salad chain Sweetgreen valued at $5.5 billion as shares soar in New York debut

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The Los Angeles, California-based company’s shares opened at $52, compared to the IPO price of $28 a share, which was well above its targeted price range of between $23 and $25.

Sweetgreen raised $364 million on Wednesday, selling 13 million shares, compared with its initial plan of 12.5 million.

The company, founded by three college graduates in 2007, operates 140 restaurants in 13 states in the United States. It offers “earth-friendly” meals made with seasonal, locally-sourced ingredients.

In its IPO filing, Sweetgreen reported a loss of $87 million on revenue of $243.4 million for the nine months ended September, compared with a loss of $100 million on revenue of $161.4 million a year earlier.

Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) and J.P.Morgan were among the lead underwriters for Sweetgreen’s IPO.