JetBlue Airways IPOIn April 2000, JetBlue first launched at New York's John F. Kennedy Airport. Even after the 2001 terrorist attacks, the company remained profitable and grew aggressively. To support its growth and offset portfolio losses by their venture capitalists, management was prepared to raise additional capital through a public stock offering. With representatives of co-lead manager Morgan Stanley and the board of directors of JetBlue were trying to reach an agreement on the offering price of the new shares. The initial price range was $22 to $24. Facing considerable excess demand for the planned 5.5 million shares in the IPO, management recently filed an increase in the offering's price range from $25 to $26. NASDAQ was ready for JBLU (the company's ticker symbol) to begin trading on the exchange. Former JetBlue Airways Vice Chairman David Barger had agreed to become JetBlue's new president and CEO. John Owen had left his position as executive vice president. president and former treasurer of Southwest Airlines to fill the role of CFO at JetBlue. In 1999, David Neeleman announced the launch of a new airline. He had received strong support for his business plan from the venture capital community. It had quickly raised $130 million from high-profile firms such as Weston Presidio Capital, Chase Capital Partners and George Soros' private fund. capital needs, but also maintaining access to future capital raisings and providing positive returns to crew members and others involved in direct stock purchases during the IPO. With continued access to capital markets considered vital to JetBlue's aggressive growth plans, reducing the company's IPO price seemed like a good thing. a reasonable concession to ensure the success of the deal and generate some level of buzz among investors. By 2002, the U.S. economy had been at a standstill for nearly two years. The Federal Reserve had attempted to stimulate economic activity by cutting interest rates by 5%, short-term rates were 2%, and the market risk premium was estimated at 5%.