SolarMax triumphs in Wall Street debut

US integrated solar energy company SolarMax Technology Inc (NASDAQ:SMXT) saw its shares skyrocket on its first day of trading in New York on Tuesday, closing at USD 8 apiece, twice the initial public offering (IPO) price.

Earlier that day, SolarMax announced that it had priced its IPO at USD 4 per share, as expected. The transaction raised USD 18 million (EUR 16.5m) in gross proceeds from the sale of 4.5 million shares of common stock.

Shares in the Riverside, California-based firm opened below the issue price at USD 3.50 and reached an intra-day high of USD 9.35 apiece.

Founded in 2008, SolarMax specialises in the sale and installation of photovoltaic and battery backup systems for residential and commercial customers, as well as sales of LED systems and services to government and commercial users.

SolarMax first sought to go public in 2016, filing a draft registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). It then tried to merge with a local special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) but the tie-up agreement was scrapped in 2022.

The IPO push was restarted later in 2022. The company then initially planned to offer 7.5 million shares but revised the terms of the proposed transaction in July 2023.

(USD 1 = EUR 0.921)

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