Jersey Mike’s launches IPO, seeking to raise up to $1B

Jersey Mike’s on Monday launched its initial public offering, seeking to raise up to $1.09 billion.

Parent company Jersey Mike’s Subs Inc. said it plans to offer 43,478,261 shares of its Class A common stock at a price between $21 and $25 per share. The stock is expected to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol “JMKE.”

In addition, underwriters will have a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 6,521,739 shares of Class A common stock to cover over allotments at the IPO price, less underwriting discounts and commissions.

The IPO is expected to be the largest the restaurant industry has seen, though more are coming down the pike. Dunkin’ parent Inspire Brands is also expected to go public later this year, and the mega food app Wonder is preparing for a potentially massive IPO.

For Jersey Mike’s, the move comes less than two years after the sandwich chain was acquired by private-equity firm Blackstone for $6.3 billion. Charlie Morrison, who also took Wingstop public, was named CEO, becoming the first CEO to run the company after founder Peter Cancro began building the concept in Point Pleasant, New Jersey, more than 50 years ago.

Cancro continues to have “meaningful equity ownership,” he noted in a shareholder letter in Securities and Exchange Commission documents. He is also the master franchisee for the brand in the United Kingdom and Ireland, where he sees room for a minimum of 300 units. The first Jersey Mike’s in London is scheduled to open later this year. The chain has a 300-unit area development agreement to grow in Canada with Redberry Shore Restaurants LP.

The 3,300-unit chain sees room for up to 7,500 units across the U.S., and 15,000 globally in time.

Jersey Mike’s has recorded 20 consecutive years of same-store sales growth, and units averaged about $1.4 million in sales last year.

The IPO will reportedly push Jersey Mike’s initial market capitalization to close to $8 billion.