Shares of AMC Entertainment Holdings rose on their first day of trading, as the movie theater operator began life as a public company for the first time in nine years.
As of midday on Wednesday, AMC’s stock traded at $19.30, up 7.3 percent over their I.P.O. price of $18. The company and its advisers priced the offering at the bottom of the stock sale’s expected range.
Still, the theater operator raised $331.2 million, which the company plans to use to pay down debt and for future growth.
“It always feels good to retire debt, whether you’re a person or a company,†Gerry Lopez, AMC’s chief executive, said in a telephone interview. “Importantly, this also gives us the same financial flexibility that some of our competitors have had. Rapid expansion, acquisitions â€" if we wanted to explore those things, we now can.â€
Like other theater operators, the company has sought ways to bolster revenue as more customers choose to watch movies at home. AMC has focused on improving the quality of its cinemas, like lifting the quality of food and offering dine-in services at some of its theaters.
It is also adding more screens capable of showing giant-screen formats like IMAX, which can command higher ticket prices.
AMC returned to the public markets only a year after being sold to the Dalian Wanda Group, the biggest movie theater operator in China. Wanda will retain an 80 percent stake in the company even after the I.P.O.
Mr. Lopez’s high spirits even extended to the big studios, which routinely lock horns with exhibitors over everything from in-theater advertising to release dates.
“We have big fights with them all the time, and they have big fights with us,†he said. “The fact is that neither of us would be in business without the other. And 2013 has been a very, very good year for everyone.â€
