Fairway Market Launches Public Offering

New York City-based grocery store chain Fairway Group Holdings Corp. (NASDAQ: FWM) held its initial public offering today, with shares going out at $13, above the expected range of $10 to $12 a share. The company's Fairway Markets operate in and around New York City, and the company plans to use part of the proceeds of up to $150 million to expand into the suburbs around the city.

Proceeds from the IPO will be used to pay an accrued and unpaid preferred stock dividend of $76.8 million, as well as management bonuses and a management agreement termination fee. The company is selling about 13.4 million class A common shares, and certain stockholders are selling another 286,000 class A shares.

The company has also issued class B common stock, and holders of the class B shares will hold 85.7% of the voting power, according to the company's filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Sterling Investment Partners will hold about 77% of the voting power in the company following the IPO.

Fairway had originally planned to hold its IPO late last year, but those plans were set aside following Hurricane Sandy.

Shares are up about 30% at $16.89 in the first 90 minutes of trading today.

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Food, IPOs Tagged: FWM