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Align Tech IPO up 33%
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January 26, 2001: 11:53 a.m. ET
Maker of clear mouthpieces gains 33% as second IPO this year
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Align Technology Inc., a provider of invisible mouthpieces to correct crooked teeth, rose nearly 33 percent Friday as it became the second IPO to begin trading this year.
Align gained $4.31 to close at $17.31.
Santa Clara, Calif.-based Align Technology (ALGN: Research, Estimates) raised $130 million after selling 10 million shares at $13 each Thursday, below its expected range, via lead underwriters DB Alex. Brown. The company had planned to offer 10 million shares at $14 to $16 each.
The Align IPO follows Thursday's public offering of Peet's Coffee & Tea Inc., which climbed 17 percent. Both Align and Peet's (PEET: Research, Estimates) followed a strategy used by IPOs late last year -- cutting their price ranges to attract investor interest.
 Any gains posted by new issues is good for the overall IPO market, said analyst Steve Tuen, of IPO Value Monitor.
"With the technology swoon of the last couple of days, this is actually a pretty good showing," Tuen said. "Even though they had to reduce the actual pricing, I think this gives investors some leeway in terms of looking for a profit."
Align makes the "invisalign system," which are clear, removable braces that gently straighten teeth. Align has trained more than 5,300 orthodontists to use its system and 9,200 have begun using the mouthpieces.
Align is responsible for the national advertising campaign, with commercials on major television shows, comparing patients with metal braces to Align's clear braces. However, the early stage company is not profitable, with losses of $53.3 million on revenue of $3.5 million for the nine months ended Sept. 30. 
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