Tesla shares zoom on first day of trading

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - Shares in Tesla Motors proved to be as coveted as the electric cars it produces, as its stock rose about 8 percent above its initial public offering price.

Tesla, appearing on the Nasdaq stock market under the ticker symbol “TSLA,” traded at about $18.40 in early afternoon trading. Shares initially opened around that level, then plunged before climbing back up.

TeslaÂ’s underwriters, sensing bigger-than-expected investor appetite for the offering, raised the initial sale price to $17, above the $14 to $16 expected range. They also increased the number of shares to be sold in the offering by 20 percent, to more than 13 million shares.

The offering garnered Tesla more than $226 million in proceeds.

So far, investors appear unconcerned about some of the risks of investing in Tesla. Among those, as noted by the company: its constant losses since its founding its dependence on access to loans from the Energy Department and its reliance on one car model, the $109,000 Roadster. The more affordable $50,000 Model S isnÂ’t expected to hit sales floors for another two years.