Blackstone-Backed Jersey Mike’s Falls 8.7% After $1 Billion IPO

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(Bloomberg) — Jersey Mike’s Subs Inc. shares slumped 8.7% in their trading debut Thursday, after the company and some of its shareholders raised $1 billion in a US initial public offering that priced at the midpoint of its marketed range.

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The stock opened at $21 each, below its IPO price of $23 per share. The trading gives the Tinton Falls, New Jersey-based sandwich chain a market value of $6.7 billion, based on the outstanding shares. 

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Jersey Mike’s offered 13.8 million shares in the offering, and backers including Blackstone Inc. and Abu Dhabi Investment Authority offered 29.7 million shares. Shares were marketed at $21 to $25 each. 

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The chain joins a surge in newly-listed companies on US exchanges, even though the market for food and beverage retailer IPOs has been relatively weak, with Black Rock Coffee Bar Inc. and Chinese tea chain Chagee Holdings Ltd. slumping in the months after their respective debuts last year.

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Jersey Mike’s IPO was about 15 times oversubscribed, Bloomberg News reported earlier. The offering was also being marketed to retail investors in the UK via Winterflood Securities Ltd., a division of Marex Group Ltd., according to a filing. 

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The S&P 1500 Restaurants Index has declined 0.5% this year through Wednesday’s close, underperforming the S&P 500 Index’s 6.9% advance in the same period, as operators navigate through a difficult environment of value-seeking consumers, persistent inflation and an elevated promotional environment.

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Still, sandwiches and other handheld meals are having a moment as diners prioritize convenience at an affordable price, shunning some bowl concepts they’ve come to perceive as overpriced. The chain’s US sales growth has outpaced that of large competitors such as Jimmy John’s, while Subway experienced a decline, according to data from restaurant research firm Technomic Inc. With its restaurant booking sales of $4.2 billion in 2025, Jersey Mike’s is one of the country’s biggest chains.

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While Jersey Mike’s bills itself as a premium sub option, it has launched cheaper products lately to appeal to price-conscious consumers, Chief Executive Officer Charlie Morrison told Bloomberg News in an interview. One of the company’s most successful limited-time offers was its recent grilled sandwich with meats including salami and pepperoni, topped with melted provolone cheese, priced at $8.95.

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Jersey Mike’s has more than 3,300 locations in the US and Canada. It partnered with its founder and former Chief Executive Officer Peter Cancro to open approximately 300 stores in the UK and Ireland.

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Jersey Mike’s wants to eventually more than double its US footprint to about 7,500 locations. Morrison believes adding more locations won’t steal sales from existing restaurants, given what he’s seen in North Carolina, which has the highest concentration of Jersey Mike locations in the US.

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The company grew revenue to $724 million in 2025, up roughly 11% from $653 million the year prior, according to a previous filing. It recorded adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of $339 million last year compared with $263 million in the year before, the filing shows.