Insurer Bowhead soars over 35% in stellar market debut

Shares of insurer Bowhead Specialty Holdings (BOW.N) rose 35.3% in their debut on the New York Stock Exchange giving the company a valuation of about $705.3 million, underscoring a positive year for the U.S. initial public offering (IPO) market.

Bowhead debuted at $23 per share compared with an upsized IPO price of $17. The firm sold 7.5 million shares in its offering and raised $128 million.

The U.S. IPO market, which has been subdued for the past couple of years, is well on its way to a comeback in 2024 on rising hopes of a rate cut in the second half of the year and a soft landing for the economy.

Several companies, both domestic and foreign, have already listed in 2024 or are in the pipeline for a stock flotation later in the year.

Social media company Reddit RDDT and Chinese electric vehicle maker Zeekr ZZK received strong responses to their market debuts earlier in the year.

Bowhead was founded in 2020 and has a presence across the U.S. specialty and casualty insurance markets. It is an affiliate of business and personal insurer American Family Insurance.

J.P. Morgan, Morgan Stanley and Keefe, Bruyette & Woods acted as the lead underwriters of the offering.