Sea Harvest Holdings Proprietary Limited (shortly to be converted to a public company and renamed Sea Harvest Group Limited) has announced its intention to list its issued ordinary share capital on the main board of the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE), subject to approval by the shareholders of Brimstone Investment Corporation Limited (Sea Harvest’s JSE-listed controlling shareholder), market conditions and the requisite approvals by the JSE. It is currently envisaged that a capital raising of up to R1.5 billion (Private Placement) will be undertaken by Sea Harvest simultaneously with the Listing.
Sea Harvest is a black-controlled fishing and branded FMCG business established in 1964 with operations in South Africa and Australia. With access to a fleet of 29 vessels and close to 3,000 employees, the Group has operations in Saldanha Bay on the West Coast of South Africa and in Mossel Bay on the Southern Coast of South Africa through an exclusive supply arrangement with SeaVuna Fishing Company Proprietary Limited. In July 2016, Sea Harvest acquired a controlling interest in Mareterram Limited, a vertically integrated agri-business listed on the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX share code: MTM) with operations in Shark Bay, Carnarvon, Western Australia, a head office in Perth and a national sales team.
The principal business of the Group is the fishing of Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certified Cape hake and Shark Bay tiger and king prawns, processing of the catch into frozen and chilled seafood, and the packaging, marketing and distribution of these products both locally and internationally. Sea Harvest is the leading frozen fish brand in South Africa with strong consumer loyalty and brand equity.
The Group has demonstrated strong growth in the last five years with revenue and EBITDA growing at CAGRs of 15% and 22%, respectively. During this same period, EBITDA margins expanded from c.15% to c.19%. In the financial year ended 31 December 2016, 59% of the Group’s revenues were generated in hard currencies with Europe and Australia being the Group’s largest international markets.
Sea Harvest’s vision is “To be a leading and responsible diversified global fishing company”.
The Listing will allow the Group to optimize its capital structure, strengthen its balance sheet and provide the Group with additional capital. The capital raised will support management’s strategy of continuing to invest in the business, aimed at further improving margins, supporting organic growth, as well as pursuing the Group’s strategy of becoming a diversified global fishing company through value-creating acquisitions. The Listing will also establish a platform from which equity capital may be raised in the future to facilitate further growth and value accretive acquisition opportunities.
Sea Harvest expects to be listed in the Food and Beverage sector of the JSE by the end of March 2017. The Standard Bank of South Africa Limited has been appointed as Bookrunner and Transaction Sponsor in relation to the Offering. A Pre-listing Statement including full details of the Offering will be made available in due course.
Felix Ratheb, Sea Harvest’s Chief Executive Officer and Non-Executive Director of Mareterram, says:
“With ambitions set on becoming a diversified global seafood business, listing on the JSE is the natural next step for the Sea Harvest Group. It provides the company with access to equity capital to invest in its assets, which will further enhance the Group’s margins and allow Sea Harvest to pursue further acquisitions in both South Africa and Australia.”
