BANGKOK Thai food company Betagro Pcl said in a stock exchange filing on Tuesday that it plans to raise 17.4 billion baht $463.38 million in an initial public offering IPO later this month.
The IPO would be Thailand's second largest offering this year after Thai Life Insurance Pcl raised nearly $1 billion in July.
The benchmark index was down 6 per cent year to date, making it an uneasy time for Thai equities.
If the company has an allotment option of 65.2 million shares, it will be able to hold up to 20 billion baht, raising up to 234.8 million shares at 40 baht each, which will raise up to 20 billion baht.
Proceeds will be used to acquire or build new factories, pay off debt, and as working capital, according to Betagro.
In the first half of 2022, the company recorded net profits of 3.9 billion baht, up from 1.2 billion baht a year earlier, due to higher market prices in the proteins business, including poultry, eggs and processed food.
It plans to have a dividend policy of at least 30 per cent of net profits.
Its foreign bookrunner is Merrill Lynch Bank of America. The lead local underwriters are Kiatnakin Phatra and Bualuang Securities. Other companies included Kasikorn Securities, Maybank Securities and Innovest X Securities.
The IPO period will be from October 20 to October 25 this year.