BRIEF: WH Group to sell down Smithfield stake

Pork producer WH Group Ltd. (0288.HK) announced on Wednesday that its wholly owned SFDS UK Smithfield unit will sell 16 million shares of its U.S.-based Smithfield Foods Inc. (SFD.US) subsidiary in a secondary offering.

The sale’s underwriters also have an option to purchase up to 2.4 million additional shares, WH Group said. As the shares will be sold by SFDS UK, Smithfield will not issue any new shares or receive any proceeds from the transaction. WH Group stated that Smithfield will remain a subsidiary following the offering’s completion.

Smithfield re-listed on the Nasdaq in January this year. The stock closed down 5.64% at $24.07 on Wednesday in New York, but remains up 21.87% since its listing.

Based on the latest closing price, the sale of 16 million shares would generate about $385 million. Including the overallotment option, it could generate up to $443 million in proceeds.

WH Group’s stock opened lower on Thursday in Hong Kong and closed at HK$ 8,28 by the midday break, down 1.31%.

By Lee Shih Ta

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