BIRK: Birkenstock Flops in Weak Market Debut as Shares Close 13% Below IPO Price

The German sandal maker had pinned its valuation at a historical peak of $8.6bn. Turns out, investors don’t buy that.

• Birkenstock floated its newly-issued shares out in the open moments before they realized no one wanted to bid for them. Birkenstock’s stock BIRK dived underwater and closed its first day of trading in New York at $40.20, down 13% from its IPO (over)priced at $46 a share.
• The company was seeking a valuation of $8.6bn. But investors didn’t seem to think a cork sandal maker, albeit with a history dating back to 1774, was worth that much. Its financials are also weighing: for the nine months to June, Birkenstock picked up $1.19bn in revenue, churning a profit of roughly $100mn.
• Birkenstock’s IPO didn’t bring much buzz on Wall Street after three buzzy IPOs cratered shortly after they made a spectacular entrance to the stock market. British chip-designer Arm ARM, backed by SoftBank, marketing-analytics platform Klaviyo KVYO, and grocery-delivery app Instacart CART are all trading below their IPO prices.