United Parcel Service had, for the majority of its history, been "Closely Held" meaning they were not publicly traded, but they did have shares of company stock and offered those shares to their employees as part of their retirement plan. Other notable companies that do the same thing are Publix Supermarkets and Penske Truck Leasing, both closely held.
Anyway....
Their "Package Car" drivers had been able to take part in that stock purchase plan for years, and many who had been with the company a long time had quite a few shares built up.
When UPS did its IPO in November of 1999, many of those regular Joe, hardworking delivery drivers were millionaires overnight, simply because they had acquired so many shares over the years and the immediate spike in price when trading started made them rich truckers! Of course, they would have had to sell in order to realize it, but there you go! The thing is, UPS has traded in a relatively narrow range for most of the last 14 years, between 50 and $70/share. It closed Friday at 102.52, down slightly from its all time high of $105 reached on Dec 30. It began trading in the $65 range, back in '99
If your husbands firm had not offered company stock before their IPO, then he would of course, not be in that same boat, so to speak.
Now that you have given more detail, it does indeed sound as if they have great confidence in your husband. He needs to (if he hasn't already) have a real good think about how he feels the company will perform in the coming years. Do they have a well diversified customer base? Are new contracts coming down the pipeline? Have they made capital investments to help them stay competitive - like buying new, more fuel efficient tractors? Or is that what the money from the IPO will be used for? How is their overall safety rating? That sort of thing. With the new "CSA and "SAFER" (Safety And Fitness Electronic Records) ratings, how does the company fare?
If the answer is yes to the above, then taking a position in the company shares is probably a good idea. Domestic ground freight movement can NOT be outsourced. There will always be trucks, in one fashion or another.
It sounds like a tremendous opportunity for him. As someone who has spent the better part of the last 25 years in the trucking industry, I must say I congratulate him. It's nice to be recognized!
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