Shareholders approve proposed Sanderson Farms sale

The planned sale of Sanderson Farms moved one step closer to completion as Sanderson Farms stockholders voted in approval the agreement in which Cargill and Continental Grain, through a joint venture, would acquire Sanderson Farms and merge it with Wayne Farms.

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Jbs Vote

The planned sale of Sanderson Farms moved one step closer to completion as Sanderson Farms stockholders voted in approval the agreement in which Cargill and Continental Grain, through a joint venture, would acquire Sanderson Farms and merge it with Wayne Farms.

The vote took place during special meeting of stockholders, which was held on October 21.

According to a press release from Sanderson Farms, preliminary results of the vote showed that more than 86% of the outstanding shares, or more than 99% of the votes cast voted in favor of the transaction. The final voting results will later be filed on a Form 8-K with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Under the proposed deal between Sanderson Farms, Cargill and Continental Grain, Sanderson Farms stockholders would receive $203 per share.

“We are pleased Sanderson Farms stockholders approved this transaction and thank them for their support,” Sanderson Farms Chairman and CEO Joe F. Sanderson Jr. stated in the press release. “We believe this transaction will benefit our various stakeholders, including employees, poultry producers and customers, and we remain focused on continuing to deliver the highest quality poultry products and services.”

The transaction is expected to close in the fourth calendar quarter of 2021 or the first calendar quarter of 2022, and is subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.

According to the WATTPoultry.com Top Companies Database, Sanderson Farms is the third largest poultry company in the United States, while Wayne Farms is the seventh. Sanderson Farms produced 94.31 million pounds of ready-to-cook chicken on a weekly basis, while Wayne Farms produced 48.8 million pounds weekly.

A combined company, according to those figures, would still be the third-largest poultry company in the United States, as the second largest company, Pilgrim’s Pride, produced 161.66 pounds on a weekly basis.

However, since the proposed transaction was announced, Wayne Farms announced that it is divesting of its poultry complex in Laurel, Mississippi. The complex was sold to Amick Farms, a subsidiary of OSI Group. OSI also has poultry operations in Australia through the Turosi subsidiary and in China through the Otto & Sons Weihai subsidiary.

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