The 8-2 Green Bay Packers (number one in the NFC North, by the way) have decided to celebrate their success this season by offering fans the chance to buy shares of the team. For the first time in 10 years, and the sixth time in franchise history, the Packers are, figuratively, going public. For $300 a share, the green and gold fan in your life can own Green Bay Packers stock.
With this news, there are obviously many questions that need answers.
Firstly, no, you cannot buy enough shares to become an owner of the team. While 300,000 shares are being issued, there are mandates in place limiting any one person from owning more than 200 shares. That includes shares purchased from any of their previous stock offerings.
The shares are, financially, worthless. That is to say, the shares will hold virtually no value, are not transferrable or tradable, nor will they pay dividends or give owners any practical voting right on virtually any aspect of the team. The shares themselves are basically just pieces of paper.
Packers Stock: What Investors Need to Know
The Packers, unlike every other NFL team, are operated much like a publicly traded company. Rather than an owner, they have a seven-member executive committee, headed by President Mark Murphy, who operate the team on behalf of the shareholders. There are currently 360,760 shareholders who own a total of 5,011,558 shares of the Wisconsin franchise.
The Packers stock program is something of an anomaly in professional sports. Because they don’t have a super wealthy owner or donor club backing them, the NFL lets them have these stock offerings in order to raise funds for the franchise. In this case, it’s $90 million dollars in estimated stock funding for reported Lambeau Field improvements.
The first time the Packers “went public” was in 1923, for $5 a share, just to keep the team afloat. Back then, however, buying five shares or more also came with a box seat for every home game.
This new round of shares is set to hit the market this Tuesday, Nov. 16, at 8 a.m. Central time. It will be the first ownership offering since 1997.
On the date of publication, Shrey Dua did not have (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.
