Florida-based First Watch restaurant chain files for IPO
September 8, 2021 - The Bradenton-based breakfast chain First Watch Restaurants Inc. filed an initial public offering with plans to raise up to $100 million. The chain, which is backed by Advent International Corp., plans to use the proceeds to pay off its debt that totals more than $294 million, according to the IPO filing on Tuesday. The stock would be traded on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the ticker FWRG. “Despite the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic, First Watch remained committed to invest in growth throughout 2020 and 2021 and continued to open new restaurants,” the company said in its SEC filing. The company has 42 new restaurant openings in fiscal 2020 and 18 in the first half of 2021. In total, First Watch has 423 systemwide restaurants.