Kenya Orchards rebranded after majority buyout by Africa Mega Agricorp

By bne IntelliNews January 30, 2025

Kenya Orchards Limited (KOL), which makes and sells bottled and tinned fruit and vegetable products for domestic consumption,  has rebranded as Africa Mega Agricorp Plc following the purchase of 84% of its shares by Africa Mega Agricorp, Business Daily reported on January 29.

The buyout deal, first disclosed in June 2024, saw 10.86mn shares in the Nairobi-listed retailer acquired from Westpac Holdings Ltd (34%) and directors Thakarshi Keshav Patel (33.6%) and Vipul Thakarshi Patel (14.88%).

The financial terms of the deal remain undisclosed, but at Kenya Orchards' December 2024 closing price of KES 70 ($0.54) per share, the acquired stake is now valued at KES 760.4mn ($5.88mn), up from KES 210mn ($1.62mn) based on June's share price of KES 19.50 ($0.15).

The transaction was concluded through a private sale and asset transfers to settle outstanding debts, and it was approved by shareholders in an extraordinary general meeting in August 2024. A notice published on January 29 confirmed that the company’s name change was formalised with the receipt of a certificate from the Registrar of Companies on December 16, 2024.

The company reported an 8.1% decline in profit after tax for the year ending December 2023, falling to KES 1.77mn ($13,678.56) from KES 1.92mn ($14,837.76) the previous year, reflecting a challenging operating environment.

In a circular to shareholders dated July 23, Kenya Orchards clarified that Africa Mega Agricorp would not extend the offer to remaining shareholders nor pursue a delisting from the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE).

This deal follows a similar transaction in 2023, when East Africa Batteries Limited sold a 35% stake in Eveready East Africa to Dubai-based InvestAfrica FZCO, which also opted not to buy out minority shareholders or delist the company.

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