APF Holdings IPO Attracts 107% of Investment Target

AS APF Holdings (hereafter – APF) in its initial public offering (IPO), which concluded on Friday, November 3rd, has attracted 107% of the investment target, which amounts to 5 624 204 euros. The IPO target price per share was 5.11 euros, with a goal of 5 252 722 euros. In total, 2 128 investors participated in the IPO, and two Latvian pension funds also acquired a significant portion of the shares issued.

Given that the demand for shares exceeded the supply, investment orders will be executed for 5.25 million euros, and the remaining amount will be returned to investors in accordance with the IPO allocation rules. The allocation of shares will take place today. 

“Despite the prevailing pessimistic sentiment among investors on the Baltic Stock Exchange, we managed to surpass the IPO investment target thanks to a compelling growth story that includes clarity on the dynamics of egg production supply and demand, our sustainability performance and ambitions, as well as our detailed development plans. We are pleased that two Latvian pension funds and a large number of private individuals have expressed their trust in our business by making significant investments, both in relatively small and substantial amounts,” said Juris Adamovičs, Chairman of the Board of AS APF Holdings. 

“I hope that our IPO will strengthen the Latvian capital market and provide confidence that with a well-founded business vision, Latvian and Baltic companies can attract the necessary funds from various sources, including local pension funds, which have not participated in Latvian IPO deals for more than five years,” continued J. Adamovičs. 

Of the IPO investment volume, 90% was raised in Latvia, while 9% was raised in Estonia, and 1% in Lithuania. In terms of the number of investors, 73 % were from Latvia, 25 % from Estonia, and 2 % from Lithuania. IPO share purchase orders were received from 12 Baltic banks and 1 investment management company. 

“We congratulate APF Holdings on having more than 2,000 new shareholders and the new shareholders with the prospect of investing in a local production company, whose products they can now purchase from store shelves as co-owners. At a time when most IPO projects in most countries have almost come to a standstill, local investors in Latvia have shown significant support for an ambitious local company. APF Holdings IPO is a project that we can truly be proud of, with a growing local investor community. More than 90% of the IPO proceeds were from Latvia, which, together with local pension plans, provides real opportunities for local companies to attract financing in the local capital market,” said Roberts Idelsons, Chairman of the Board of Signet Bank. 

On the day of listing, with a share price of 5.11 euros per share, APF’s total market capitalization, or the total market value of all company shares, will be 29.3 million euros. APF’s shares will be listed on the Nasdaq Riga Stock Exchange’s First North list, starting this Thursday at 10:00 a.m. The trading symbol for APF shares on the stock exchange will be “EGG.” 

As reported earlier, the goal of APF’s IPO was to raise funds for growth, significantly expanding its operational scale and increasing egg production by 60% by 2025 while more than doubling its revenue from around 11 million euros in 2022 to 25 million euros in 2025. With investor contributions from the IPO and further bank financing, it is planned to build two additional laying hen facilities in addition to the existing three and expand production support infrastructure. This will increase egg production from 115 million eggs per year to as much as 180 million and grow the number of laying hens to 665 thousand. In addition, APF plans to start egg processing, supplementing its production with new production facilities to create modern and healthy egg products. 

Signet Bank is the financial advisor and organizer of the APF IPO, with AS LHV Pank acting as the IPO share sales agent in Estonia. Legal matters related to the APF IPO are advised by the Eversheds Sutherland Bitāns law firm. It is expected that APF’s share listing on the Nasdaq alternative market First North list will begin on November 9th this year or shortly thereafter. 

AS APF Holdings was founded in 2017 by Juris Adamovičs to acquire and modernize a poultry factory based in Alūksne with a history of 60 years. Currently, AS APF Holdings encompasses a group of companies engaged in poultry farming, chicken egg production and trading, as well as gas and organic fertilizer production related to poultry farming processes. The group of companies includes SIA Alūksnes putnu ferma (poultry farming and egg production), SIA APF Trading (wholesale trade in chicken eggs), SIA Oluksne (providing poultry farming and egg production services), SIA APF Energy (gas and organic fertilizer production), and SIA Preiļu putni (poultry farming and young chicken rearing). Juris Adamovičs is the largest shareholder of AS APF Holdings. 

Disclaimer: This statement is unpaid marketing communication in accordance with the Prospectus Regulation and should not be considered as investment advice or an offer. The information provided here includes statements regarding the public offering of AS “APF Holdings” shares. Each investment decision should be based on the Prospectus approved by the Bank of Latvia. The approved Prospectus is available on the Bank of Latvia’s website (https://bank.lv/).