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New Brighton-based Calyxt Inc.’s shares rose over 30 percent by midday on its first day trading as a public company.

The developer of agricultural gene-editing technology for food producers priced its initial public offering Wednesday evening after the stock market closed.

Calyxt priced 7 million shares at $8 per share and raised about $56 million. The offering price was at the low end of a revised offering range of $8 to $10 per share. At one point, the offering price was expected to be in the $15 to $18 per share range and the company hoped to raise $100 million.

But the company sold more shares than previously disclosed. Previous documents indicated the company would offer 6,060,606 shares. Underwriters have an option to sell additional shares.

The company started trading under the stock symbol CLXT when the market opened Thursday. Shares of Calyxt priced at $8 per share and rose quickly to $10.41 per share in midday trading Thursday.

To mark the new offering Federico Tripodi, CEO of Calyxt, rang the opening bell at the Nasdaq exchange. Tripodi is an Argentinian who earned a MBA from Washington University and worked for nearly two decades at agriculture company Monsanto.

He became CEO of Calyxt in May 2016.

“We believe the proceeds raised today will be critical to funding our vision and growth plan for the next two years,” Tripodi said.

Calyxt was a subsidiary of Paris-based Cellectis, a gene-editing company. After the offering the French company controls about 83 percent of Calyxt’s shares, 80 percent if underwriters exercise their option to purchase additional shares…