IPO Alert: Smithfield Foods looks to raise $940 million in US IPO

After shifting to recovery mode last year and experiencing a steady uptick in activity, the IPO market is poised to witness one of the biggest food sector IPOs in recent times. Smithfield Foods, Inc., the world’s largest pork producer, has filed for a public listing of its shares on the Nasdaq stock market, targeting to raise around $940 million.

According to documents filed with the Securities and Exchanges Commission, the Virginia-based food company and a subsidiary of its parent company WH Group Limited are planning to offer 17.4 million shares each in an initial public offering. The company has set the IPO price in the $23-$27 per share range, aiming to generate up to $940 million in proceeds from the total offering of 34.8 million shares. Post-IPO, WH Group will own about 90% of Smithfield.

To List on Nasdaq

Smithfield has applied to list the shares on the Nasdaq stock market under the symbol SFD. The group of underwriters will be led by Morgan Stanley, BofA Securities, and Goldman Sachs. The company intends to use proceeds from the offering for general corporate purposes, including capital investments in infrastructure, automation, and capacity expansion.

As per preliminary estimates, for the three months ended December 29, the company generated sales in the range of $3.87 billion to $3.95 billion, compared to $4.0 billion in the comparable period of 2023. The decline is attributable to lower sales from Mexico operations and lower external hog and grain sales, partially offset by higher sales of packaged meats and fresh pork.

Net income from continuing operations is estimated to range from $195 million to $223 million during the three-month period, compared to a net loss of $131 million a year earlier. The improvement mainly reflects better operating performance and an improvement in results from equity method investments.

The Company

Founded in 1936, Smithfield operates around 500 pig farms in the US and owns popular sausage and hot dog brands like Eckrich, Nathan’s Famous, and Farmer John. More than a decade ago, the company traded on the New York Stock Exchange, between 1999 and 2013, but was taken private after being acquired by WH Group.