Shares of stock in the Braves began trading on the Nasdaq exchange Monday morning and dropped sharply from their opening price.
Team owner Liberty Media completed a long-in-the-works transaction late Friday to exchange its existing stock for three new tracking stocks, including one tied to the Braves.
The Liberty Braves Group’s Series A shares (symbol BATRA) opened at $36 Monday morning, plummeted quickly and closed at $19.95 — down 44.6 percent from the opening price. The Liberty Braves Group’s Series C shares (symbol BATRK) opened at $27 and closed at $19.14, down 29.1 percent.
The series have different voting powers for stockholders.
The tracking stock allows investors and baseball fans to buy and sell shares in the Braves on the open market, separate from the rest of the Colorado-based conglomerate. The Braves remain part of the overall Liberty Media company.
The Braves stock is intended to reflect – or track – the economic performance and value of the team and its stake in a mixed-use development being built alongside a new Cobb County stadium. Both SunTrust Park and the mixed-use development, The Battery Atlanta, are slated to open next year.
Please click here for myAJC.com story with more on the Braves' first day of trading on the stock market, including comments from fans/investors.
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