Hot Dog Chain Portillo’s Fares Better Than Vita Coco in Debut

Crystal Tse and Leslie Patton, Bloomberg News

(Bloomberg) -- Celebrity-backed coconut beverage maker Vita Coco Co. fell in its trading debut while hot dog and hamburger restaurant chain Portillo’s Inc. fared better in its opening trades as well as its initial public offering.

Vita Coco and its existing shareholders sold 11.5 million shares Wednesday for $15 each after marketing them for $18 to $21, raising $173 million. The shares opened at Thursday at 37 cents above the IPO price and rose as much as 10%. The shares were down 4.8% to $14.28 at 2:37 p.m.

“The IPO market is a bit tough,” said Mike Kirban, Vita Coco’s co-founder and chief executive officer. “Our goal coming into this is getting the best investors possible and we were able to do that.”

Kirban said in an interview that Vita Coco’s stock is an alternative to the traditional investment options in the beverage category -- Coca Cola and Pepsi -- and it is tapping into the future generation of consumer and investors that are looking for healthier, plant-based products.

Portillo’s, the other food company that debuted Thursday, started in a trailer in 1963 and has grown to 67 restaurants in nine states, featuring what it calls iconic Chicago street food. Its shares rose as much as 55% from its IPO price and were trading at $29.46 in New York. Portillo’s, based in Oak Brook, Illinois, raised $405 million in its share sale, pricing the stock at the top of a marketed range of $17 to $20.

In contrast to Vita Coco, Portillo’s CEO Michael Osanloo is still deciding whether to add plant-based items to its menu, and will keep it simple if it does.

“I think there are some black bean burgers that are interesting,” Osanloo said in an interview. “Right now our guests are not clamoring for that. Were going to be slow to move on this.”

P10, Enfusion

Dallas-based Investment firm P10 Inc. fell short of its $320 million target in its IPO. It priced its shares Wednesday at $12 after marketing them for $14 to $16. The shares were up 2.5% in trading Thursday.

Financial software firm Enfusion Inc., based in Chicago, also rose in its debut Thursday. It raised $319 million in its IPO, pricing its shares at the top of its marketed range of $15 to $17. The shares were up 19% to $20.20 at 2:41 p.m., giving the company a market value of $2.3 billion.

Enfusion CEO Thomas Kim said the company decided to go public in part to attract institutional investors and will remain focused on its growth.

Vita Coco’s offering was led by Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Bank of America Corp., Credit Suisse Group AG and Evercore Inc. Its shares are trading on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol COCO.

An affiliate of Keurig Dr Pepper Inc. has agreed to purchase $20 million of stock from investment firm Verlinvest, an existing backer and selling shareholder in the offering, the prospectus shows.

Keurig is a distributor of Vita Coco and RUNA Clear Energy, an energy drink owned by Vita.

Madonna, McConaughey

Early investors in Vita Coco included celebrities Madonna, Matthew McConaughey and Demi Moore.

Portillo’s offering was led by Jefferies Financial Group Inc., Morgan Stanley, Bank of America and Piper Sandler. Its shares are trading on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol PTLO.