domainapple@gmail.com Shares in buy now, pay later (BNPL) service provider Klarna jumped 14.5% on their debut on the New York Stock Exchange on Wednesday, closing at $45.82 (£33.89) per share and giving the company a market valuation of $17.3bn.
The Swedish company opened for trading at around 1 pm EST on Wednesday at $52, a jump of 30% from its initial public offering (IPO) price of $40 per share.
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Klarna co-founder and CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski told Yahoo Finance on Wednesday: “Klarna is now at 111 million users, which is pretty amazing. We’ve been growing and our main focus for the last decade have really been how do we reach as big of an audience, how do we get as many users as possible.
“And then more recently, we’ve been starting to focus on how do we sell more services and increase the revenue per user.”
Following the surge in Klarna shares on its first day of trading, stock eased back 1.3% in pre-market trading on Thursday morning.
Shares in Alibaba (9988.HK, BABA) rose on Thursday, after the Chinese tech giant announced plans to raise $3.2bn through an offering of zero coupon convertible senior notes.
Alibaba’s Hong Kong-listed shares (9988.HK) climbed 1.5% higher, while New York-listed shares (BABA) were up 2.6% in pre-market trading on Thursday.
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Alibaba said in announcement on Thursday that the net proceeds from the offering would be used towards its strategic focus on strengthening the company’s cloud infrastructure capabilities and international commerce business operations.
More specifically, the tech company said that approximately 80% of the funds would be directed towards enhancing its cloud infrastructure, including scaling up data centres, upgrading technology, and improving services to meet growing demand. It said the remaining 20% would be invested in expanding international commerce operations.
Shares in online real estate service Opendoor Technologies (OPEN) surged more than 30% in pre-market trading on Thursday, after the company named its new CEO.
Opendoor said on Wednesday that Kaz Nejatian, currently chief operating officer of Shopify shop (SHOP), had been appointed as CEO. This comes a month after Carrie Wheeler stepped down as Opendoor’s CEO, with the company’s chief technology and product officer Shrisha Radhakrishna stepping in as interim leader.
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Opendoor also announced that co-founders Keith Rabois and Eric Wu will be returning to the board of directors, with Rabois taking on the role of chairman.
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Rabois said: “Literally there was only one choice for the job: Kaz. I am thrilled that he will be serving as CEO of Opendoor.”
“He is a decisive leader who has driven product innovation at scale, ruthlessly reduced G&A [general and administrative] expenses to drive profitability and deeply understands the potential for AI to radically reshape a company’s entire operations.”
Chip design software provider Synopsys (SNPS) remained in focus on Thursday, after shares plunged 36% in the previous session as its quarterly results missed Wall Street estimates.
In results released on Tuesday, Synopsys posted third quarter revenue of $1.74bn, which was below expectations of $1.77bn, according to a Reuters report citing data compiled by LSEG.
Earnings per share on an adjusted basis came in at $3.39, which also missed estimates of $3.74.
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For the fourth quarter, Synopsys guided to revenue of $2.23bn to $2.26bn and earnings per share of $2.76 to $2.80.
Shares were up 2.4% in pre-market trading on Thursday but are down 20% year-to-date.
On the London market, shares in Fevertree Drinks (FEVR.L) jumped 10%, after the tonic-maker announced that it was extending its share buyback programme by a further £30m.
In first half results released on Thursday, Fevertree reported total adjusted revenue of £172.2m, which was little changed on the same period last year.
However, profit before tax was down 15% for the first half to £11.2m, compared to £13.2m for the same period in 2024.
In addition, the company gave an update on its strategic partnership with Molson Coors (TAP), announced in January, which gives the beverage company exclusive rights to sell, distribute, and produce the Fever-Tree brand in the United States. Fevertree said that the move into Molson Coors’ national network of distributors commenced in June as planned and is progressing well.
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Mark Crouch, market analyst at eToro, said: “Fevertree’s much-heralded partnership with Molson Coors, was meant to put some fizz back into the premium mixer. A gateway to scale a chance to sharpen its presence in the all-important US market. There are signs of promise, US revenues edged higher in the latest update, helped by stronger distribution and brand visibility. But momentum still feels laboured.”
“At home, however, the picture is less effervescent,” he said. “UK revenues have declined, and the domestic market, once the brand’s powerhouse, looks increasingly saturated. Relentless cost of living pressures, soaring borrowing costs, and a sharp pivot towards value are forcing consumers to make tougher trade-offs, particularly in discretionary categories, where premium mixers are no exception.”
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