For the first time in nearly two years, investors had the chance to get in on a major initial public offering. I'm talking about the Instacart (NASDAQ: CART) IPO, launched in September with the company valued at about $10 billion. But the operation hasn't been an overnight success. Instacart dropped on its second day of trading and has continued to fall ever since, now down 25%.

Meanwhile, the grocery delivery giant recently reported its first batch of earnings as a publicly traded company, and an initial glance offers us some rather positive numbers -- with gains in gross transaction value, revenue, orders, and gross profit based on generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). The company even established a share repurchase program, showing confidence in its future. So, should you let the IPO influence you and avoid the stock -- or buy this player after a positive earnings report? Let's dig deeper and find out.

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Source Fool.com