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Weight Watchers IPO gains
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November 15, 2001: 2:46 p.m. ET
Weight Watchers stock soars 24 percent on first day of trading.
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NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Weight Watchers International, the heavyweight initial public offering of the week, soared 24 percent on the New York Stock Exchange at midday Thursday, its first day of trading.
Weight Watchers (WTW: Research, Estimates) shares rose $5.75 to $29.75 in afternoon trading.
The company raised $417.6 million Wednesday by pricing 17.4 million shares at $24 each, the top of its already boosted range.
IPO analysts tipped Weight Watchers as the top offering of the week, noting its strong brand, high revenue growth, and excellent position in its area.
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Linda Huett, CEO of Weight Watchers, chats with CNNfn's Rhonda Schaffler about the IPO and the future.
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"This is an outstanding offering, needless to say what's happening with price performance, but more importantly because 97 percent of women in the world know the weight watchers," David Menlow, president of IPOFinancial.com, told CNNfn's The Money Gang.
"Everybody knows it," Menlow said. "It's the warm and fuzzy kind of stock and that is what people want."
Weight Watchers offers weight-loss services and currently has more than 1 million members. The 40-year-old company provides services in 27 countries around the world, helping people lose weight and maintain the loss by combining diet with weekly meetings.
The company has seen its profit margin triple in the last three years.
The lead underwriters for the deal are Goldman Sachs and Credit Suisse First Boston.
Sports medicine company D.J. Orthopedics bounced back after early losses to rise about 1 percent and keep the trend of first-day gains for healthcare IPOs going.
D.J. Orthopedics (DJO: Research, Estimates), also trading on the New York Stock Exchange, rose 14 cents to $15.14.
Led by Goldman Sachs and J.P. Morgan, the company priced 9 million shares at $17 per share, the middle of its expected range, raising $153 million.
Video game developer Bam! Entertainment (BFUN: Research, Estimates) also enjoyed a debut gain, rising $1, or 11 percent, to $9 on the Nasdaq..
The company raised $40 million Wednesday, pricing 5 million shares at $9 per share through lead underwriters Jefferies & Co. 
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