Smithfield IPO gets at meat of the M&A matter

WH

27/01/2025 19:16

(The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist.  The opinions
expressed are her own.)
    By Jennifer Saba
       NEW YORK, Jan 27 (Reuters Breakingviews) - The US pork
producer would be worth $11 bln, with debt, on its mooted price
range, 50% more than its Chinese owner paid in 2013. Sales
growth has been slow, even as profit at a key unit doubled under
WH Group. The spinoff, however sensible, speaks to the folly of
many deals.
    
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    CONTEXT NEWS 
    Smithfield Foods, the U.S. division of Chinese pork producer
WH Group, priced its shares between $23 and $27 apiece ahead of
a planned initial public offering on Jan. 28. At the midpoint of
the range, the company would be worth $11 billion, including net
debt.
    WH Group bought the company in 2013 in a deal worth $7.1
billion, including net debt.

 (Editing by Jeffrey Goldfarb and Pranav Kiran)
 ((For previous columns by the author, Reuters customers can
click on  SABA/ 
jennifer.saba@thomsonreuters.com))