MOSCOW (February 8, 2002) — Wimm-Bill-Dann Foods OJSC, a leading producer of juices and dairy products in Russia, today announced the completion of its Initial Public Offering (the “Offering”) of 10,620,001 American Depositary Shares (ADSs), each representing one share of Wimm-Bill-Dann’s common stock, at an offer price to the public of US $19.50 per ADS. As of today, Wimm-Bill-Dann’s ADSs were officially admitted for listing on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “WBD”.
Of the shares offered, 7,480,000 were sold by the company and a further 3,140,001 by selling shareholders, in total representing 25% plus one share of the Company’s equity. Wimm-Bill-Dann has granted the underwriters an overallotment option of up to 1,520,000 additional shares, and the selling shareholders have granted the underwriters an overallotment option of up to an additional 73,000 shares. The global co-ordinator for the offering is ING Barings Limited, and its affiliate, ING Barings LLC, is the Lead Manager of the offering in the United States.
Commenting on the NYSE listing, David Iakobashvili, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Wimm-Bill-Dann Foods OJSC, said: Today’s listing on NYSE is a great honour for us and the ultimate recognition of our achievements. When we set up the company in 1992, we had 5 employees and a small loan from the Russian Savings Bank. Today, we employ almost 11,000 people and are a leading producer of juices and dairy products in Russia.
“We believe that our offering in many ways symbolises a strong sign of the recovery in the Russian economy. We are the first Russian consumer goods company to list on the NYSE. In addition to raising capital to help fund our development, this IPO will enhance our transparency and demonstrate our commitment to becoming an international player,” Mr Iakobashvili said.
Net proceeds for the company will amount to approximately US $134 million. The net proceeds of the offering are intended to be used for capital expenditures, including the purchase of dairy and juice equipment and acquisitions of additional plants; the retirement of portions of Wimm-Bill-Dann’s current short-term and long-term debt; and general corporate purposes.
A copy of the prospectus may be obtained from the Lead Manager: ING Barings LLC, 1325 Avenue of the Americas, New York, New York 10019.
Wimm-Bill-Dann Foods OJSC is headquartered at 16, Yauzsky Boulevard in Moscow, Russia.
For further enquiries contact:Wimm-Bill-DannJulia Belova, Head of Public RelationsTel: +7 095 733 9726Email: belova@wbd.ru
Shared Value LtdMarina Boughton, PartnerTel: +44 207 321 5019Mobile: +44 7775 99 2437Email: mboughton@sharedvalue.net
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Wimm-Bill-Dann Foods OJSC16 Yauzsky Boulevard, Moscow, RussiaPhone: +7 095 733-97-26/9727Fax: +7 095 733-97-25web: http://www.wbd.comE-mail: kagan@wbd.ru
Some of the information in this press release may contain projections or other forward-looking statements regarding future events or the future financial performance of Wimm-Bill-Dann, as defined in the safe harbor provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. We wish to caution you that these statements are only predictions and that actual events or results may differ materially. We do not intend to update these statements to conform them to actual results. We refer you to the documents Wimm-Bill-Dann files from time to time with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including our Form F-1. These documents contain and identify important factors, including those contained in the section captioned “Risk Factors” in our Form F-1, that could cause the actual results to differ materially from those contained in our projections or forward-looking statements, including, among others, potential fluctuations in quarterly results, our competitive environment, acquisition strategy, risks associated with operating in Russia, volatility of stock price, financial risk management, and future growth subject to risks.All news