US grocery delivery startup Instacart sets IPO price at $30 per share

NEW YORK: US grocery delivery startup Instacart said that it aims to raise at least $660 million with a Tuesday stock market debut priced at $30 per share.

The share price was set at the high end of a range disclosed previously by the company, which plans to offer 22 million shares to be traded on the Nasdaq exchange under the symbol "CART," Instacart said in a release.

The price valued San Francisco-based Instacart at around $10 billion -- down from $39 billion in 2021.

In the event of strong demand, the number of shares could climb to 25.3 million, raising $759 million for Instacart.

Founded in 2012, the venture capital backed startup saw its business soar early in the coronavirus pandemic as people avoided grocery stores due to the risks from Covid-19.

The company's business went on to cool, however, leading to a cut to its workforce of shoppers.

In recent years Instacart has put a focus on orders being ready for pickup at grocery stores instead of being dropped off at customers' doors.

Rising interest rates have diminished the values of many startups and other high-risk investments.

The tech industry at-large is weathering challenging economic conditions that have prompted layoffs and other cost-cutting measures.

Maplebear Inc., which does business as Instacart, filed to become a publicly traded company on August 25.

It said in the filing that it had net income of $242 million in the first half of this year.

The company warned that it has a history of losses and "may be unable to sustain profitability or generate profitable growth in the future."