Pinterest's shares surge 25% in debut, giving it market cap of $15.8 bn

Shares of online scrapbook company Pinterest Inc surged 25 percent in their debut on Thursday, giving it a market capitalization of $15.8 billion and signalling increased investor appetite for new tech listings.

The offering of 75 million shares was priced at $19, above the expected range of $15 and $17, and raised $1.4 billion in net proceeds.

The shares opened at $23.75 and touched a high of $24.89 at of 1548 GMT.

The company breezed past the $12 billion valuation it commanded in its last private fundraising round in 2017 after the final pricing on Wednesday.
 

Shares of Zoom Video Communications, another technology company that debuted on Thursday, opened 80 percent above the IPO price of $36.

Pinterest is a social-scrapbooking website that allows users to search for various topics, from home improvement projects to travel tips, with results often showing handy infographics.

It also lets users to create social "boards", which relate to certain topics or theme, and encourages users to follow each other and their boards.

The company earns money through advertisements, which are placed among the "pins" or posts that users upload on the site.

The IPO was underwritten by a 12-member team that included Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan.