Conservative channel Newsmax surges more than 700% in stock market debut

Newsmax, the conservative media company, went public on Monday, with shares surging more than 700% in its first day on the New York Stock Exchange, giving it a market capitalization of more than $10 billion.

A rival to Fox News, Newsmax began trading on Monday after selling 7.5 million shares for $10 each in its March 28 initial stock offering, according to financial data firm FactSet. Trading under the ticker "NMAX," the shares surged more than 720% to close at $82.25 each by the time trading ended at 4 p.m.

The right-leaning news company, which began in 1998 as a digital news outlet, expanded into cable news more than a decade ago, with CEO Chris Ruddy telling CNBC on Monday that at the time he believed there was room for a competitor for Fox News. Since that debut, Newsmax has become the No. 7 basic cable network, Ruddy said. 

"We're in 57 million homes — I think we're very competitive with" Fox News, he told CNBC. 

The IPO provides Newsmax with a valuation of more than $10 billion, based on the number of shares outstanding according to a regulatory filing. Ruddy, who owns 39 million shares of Newsmax, saw his stake soar to a value of about $3.2 billion, based on today's closing price.

For the first six months of 2024, Newsmax's revenue surged about 33% from the year-earlier period to $79.8 million, although its loss widened to $55.5 million a year ago versus $38.8 million in 2023, the regulatory filing shows. 

Last year, Newsmax settled a defamation lawsuit filed by voting company Smartmatic, which the regulatory filing says included a cash payment of $40 million over time. 

Newsmax's debut took place on an unsettled day in the markets, with the S&P 500 ending higher after dipping more than 1% in early trading. 

More from CBS News

Stocks shudder again as China strikes back against Trump tariffs

Employers added 228,000 new jobs in March, blowing past forecasts

Stock market rout deepens as Dow plunges more than 2,200 points

Layoffs spiked by 205% last month, fueled by DOGE mass firings

Aimee Picchi

Aimee Picchi is the associate managing editor for CBS MoneyWatch, where she covers business and personal finance. She previously worked at Bloomberg News and has written for national news outlets including USA Today and Consumer Reports.