Sign in
Our IPO roundup this morning includes news that Modern Mills is looking to go public as well as updates on a main market share sale by Avalon Pharma.
New day, new milling IPO: The Modern Mills Company (MMC) plans to offer a 30% stake on Tadawul’s main market, it said in a regulatory filing (pdf) yesterday. Modern Mills, previously known as Milling Company 3, has received Capital Market Authority for the offering, which will see it sell some 24.5 mn shares.
What we know: The IPO is open to both institutional and individual investors, MMC said, with a final price for the offering set to be determined after the completion of the book-building process.
This is a secondary sale: Selling shareholders will own a combined 69% of Modern Mills after the transaction. They include Mada International Holding, Al Ghurair Foods Company, and Masafi Company.
MMC by the numbers:
- Revenues of SAR 452 mn in 1H 2023 and SAR 978 mn FY 2022;
- EBITDA margin of 33%
- 24% share of the domestic flour market (by volume) in FY 2022, with 46% y-o-y volume growth. That makes it the market’s largest player;
- The largest production capacity among the four state-owned millers that are now being privatized
Growth strategy: New products and exports. MMC is looking to invest in its infrastructure to take more share of the flour and flour-derivatives market. It is also looking at new products and what related categories it can push into. It’s also looking to step up flour exports and expand its animal feed sales beyond the Gulf to global markets.
All part of a wave of privatization + IPO bonanza for the milling firms: MC3 is among one of several state-owned flour milling firms that were sold to the private sector by the government in recent years under its privatization scheme for the industry. It was sold to a consortium of investors for SAR 750 mn in 2020. Since then, the milling firms have sought share sales, with First Milling going public in May with a USD 266 mn IPO.
Want to go deeper? Check out Modern Mills’ intention to float (pdf) or prospectus (pdf) or visit the IPOo website.
ADVISORS- HSBC Saudi Arabia is quarterbacking the transaction as sole financial advisor, joint bookrunner and underwriter alongside Emirates NBD Capital KSA. Moelis & Company Saudi will act as advisor to selling shareholders, while Al Rajhi Bank and Saudi National Bank are receiving agents for individual investors.
WILL MC4 IPO SOON?
Another milling firm IPO-ing soon? The Fourth Milling Company (MC4) has recently tapped Riyadh Capital as its financial advisor for an IPO in Tadawul, Bloomberg reported last month, with sources saying that the offering could happen in the first half of this year.
AVALON PHARMA-
Retail offering in drugmaker Avalon Pharma’s IPO was 54.3 oversubscribed with demand totalling c. SAR 2.7 billion, it said in a statement (pdf) yesterday, after the subscription period wrapped up earlier this month. This comes after institutional the offering was 138.7x oversubscribed.
The final price for the offering was set at SAR 82 per share, valuing the drugmaker at SAR 1.6 bn at listing, it said.
Bankers have yet to say when Avalon shares will start trading. You can check out the IPO microsite here.
ADVISORS- Aldukheil Financial Group (AFG) is quarterbacking the transaction as financial advisor and bookrunner, Alinma Investment is lead manager and underwriter, Alinma Bank and SNB are receiving agents, and Mohammed Al-Dabaan and Partners is the legal advisor. KPMG is the financial auditor while Pwc is the financial due diligence advisor, and Euromonitor International is acting as market advisor.
