Viking Holdings Sees 9% Surge in Shares After $1.5B Public Debut

Viking Holdings, the parent company of Viking cruise line, saw its shares climb 9% following its $1.5 billion public debut. The luxury cruise operator’s shares rose as much as 12% in intraday trading on Wednesday, after the company’s initial public offering raised $1.54 billion. This increase came as Viking Holdings decided to increase the number of shares offered in its public debut.

The shares of Viking Holdings began trading at $24 under the ticker symbol “VIK” and reached as high as $26.78 before closing at $26.10, marking a 9% increase for the day. This opening price gave Viking Holdings a market value of $11.3 billion, with the cruise operator ending the day with a $1.4 billion market capitalization.

Viking’s $1.54 billion IPO is one of the largest in the U.S. this year, rivaling Amer Sports Inc.’s IPO. Bloomberg noted that Viking’s offering will surpass Amer’s $1.57 billion IPO if its underwriters exercise their ability to allow the sale of additional shares. This IPO also makes Viking the third-largest cruise operator behind Royal Caribbean and Carnival, both of which traded down slightly on Wednesday.

Viking’s revenue per passenger is $7,251, significantly higher than other publicly traded cruise lines, according to CNBC. The IPO follows Viking’s decision to upsize its offering, with more than 64 million shares offered at a public offering price of $24. Existing shareholders decided to sell 9 million shares, which were not initially set to be part of the IPO, due to strong demand from mutual fund investors.

In 2023, Viking reported $4.7 billion in revenue and $1.8 billion in net losses. However, the cruise line operator may benefit from an improving outlook for the global cruise market, which was valued at $7.25 billion in 2021 and is expected to grow by around 11% by 2028. Viking, which caters to adults with high incomes, operates 92 vessels and has more than 10,000 employees.