Marfrig Advances Stock Sale

Brazilian meatpacker Marfrig says its board has approved plans to sell up to 232m new shares through an equity offering. If the block of shares, which can be upsized by 15% is priced at BRL18.00, the deal could raise BRL4.8bn. Marfrig has tapped Bradesco BBI to lead the transaction, with Credit Suisse and Itau BBA as joint leads. If exercised in its entirety, the share sale would bring Marfrig’s total number of outstanding shares to 500m, according to the statement. The meatpacker is in the process of acquiring local competitor Seara Alimentos for $900m, which was announced last week. It also says it is acquiring 51% of Uruguayan leather producer Grupo Zenda for $49.5m. Zenda has outlets in Argentina, Mexico, the US, Germany, South Africa, Chile and Hong Kong. Marfrig says in a statement it sees significant benefits to its bottom line through the acquisition, including economies of scale.