The Nasdaq is closed, and Tesla Motors [NSDQ: TSLA] is ending its first day on the market at $23.89 a share, a 40.5 percent increase over the $17 pricing it announced last night.
This is a rock star showing for the electric car company, which has exceeded expectations that were already sky high.
As of 20 minutes before 4 p.m. EST, the stock price was hovering between $21 and $22. It shot up above $23 in the last few minutes of trading, indicating delayed interest from investors not wanting to miss out on what has become one of the hottest picks on the market.
The closing price point pushes Tesla’s valuation to $2.2 billion, beating the company’s original goal of $1.4 billion by a long long shot.
Stay tuned for an accounting of how much each of Tesla’s private investors got in today’s sale. Big winners include VantagePoint Venture Partners, the company’s very first venture capital backer, Valor Equity Parnters, and of course CEO Elon Musk, who rang the bell opening the Nasdaq this morning.
Tesla was a rare bright spot in an otherwise dark market. The Nasdaq Composite Index fell 85.47 points (3.85 percent) over the course of the day.
This story, written by Camille Ricketts, was originally posted on VentureBeat's GreenBeat, an editorial partner of GreenCarReports.
