The Lake Resources N.L. (ASX: LKE) share price has had a ripper few years amid the market's growing appetite for lithium.
The company is focused on the development of Argentina's Kachi Lithium Brine Project.
However, things weren't always that way. When it first listed in 2001, the company was exploring projects in Sweden, Pakistan, and India for various minerals.
As of Tuesday's close, the Lake Resources share price trades at $1.05.
So, if an investor bought into the company at its initial public offering (IPO), how much would they have gained from the stock over its 21-year listed life? Keep reading to find out.
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How much were Lake Resources shares under the company's IPO?
An investor who snapped up a parcel of Lake Resources shares at the company's IPO would be laughing in 2022. However, for many years prior, their investment would likely have been a disappointing one.
Lake Resources issued 4.9 million shares under its oversubscribed 2001 IPO, raising $1.716 million while doing so. That suggests an offer price of 35 cents per share.
Interestingly, BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) – at that point known as BHP Billiton – snapped up US$500,000 worth of the now-lithium favourite's stock under its IPO. The pair were working together on certain tenements at Sweden's Norrbotten Project at the time.
Today, a $1,000 investment in Lake Resources at the time of its IPO would be worth $3,000 – marking a 200% gain. That's a pretty decent return.
However, at its 2015 record low, the Lake Resources share price was trading at less than a single cent. No doubt, such a tumble would have been disappointing for shareholders.
Fortunately, Lake Resources snapped up a smaller lithium company shortly after its stock hit its all-time low. That saw it taking hold of the Kachi Project, and the rest is history.
The company is now an S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) lithium favourite and the Kachi Project is expected to produce at least 50,000 tonnes of battery-quality lithium annually.
