31 Oct 2013

Tech company GeoOp makes strong sharemarket debut

7:22 pm on 31 October 2013

Shares in GeoOp, an online mobile workforce management company, made its debut on the stock exchange on Thursday at well above double the price they were sold to investors when they were initially floated.

GeoOp shares began trading at $2.38 compared with their $1 per share price in the company's $10 million capital raising.

The shares traded at between $1.90 and $2.40 on Thursday morning, before closing at $2.20 a share.

That lifted GeoOp's market value from the $27.3 million float valuation to $61.4 million.

The company, which sells smart phone applications to help small to medium-sized businesses manage their staff, is listed on the exchange's Alternative Market.

The four-year-old company, which is chaired by former NZX boss Mark Weldon, says its product already has 4000 paying users across 43 countries.

It employs 35 staff across Australasia and Britain and says the AX listing will give it the resources it needs to build its business internationally.

Chairman Mark Weldon, who is the former boss of the NZX, says he thinks the company has the potential to become a global leader and has invested in it himself.

He says GeoOp provides the opportunity to do something innovative and global, as well as providing the fulfilment of being involved with a small company and helping it grow.

Mr Weldon says he's never seen such a successful debut, but he's not getting carried away because the company, which has yet to make a profit, has still got to prove itself.