Paul Hastings and Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton have helped WH Group, the world’s biggest pork company, successfully launch an IPO in Hong Kong on the firm’s second try.
The offering, which debuted on Aug. 5, saw WH Group issue 2.57 billion new shares at HK$6.20 a share, raising US$2.05 billion. Prices were modest at 11.5 times 2014’s earnings per share, compared to 20 times in April’s botched offering.
Paul Hastings advised WH Group on Hong Kong and U.S. law, and was led by Raymond Li, partner and chair of the firm’s greater China practice, alongside Hong Kong partners Catherine Tsang, Steven Winegar and Zhaoyu Ren.
Commerce & Finance Law Offices provided PRC legal advice to WH Group, while Maples and Calder advised the pork company on Cayman Islands law.
A Cleary Gottlieb team led by Hong Kong partner Freeman Chan advised Morgan Stanley and BOC International, the joint sponsors and underwriters, on Hong Kong and U.S. law. Haiwen & Partners and Jingtian & Gongcheng advised the banks on PRC law.
WH Group’s first attempt at an IPO in April saw the firm try to raise $5.3 billion, but scared off investors with high valuations, overly-generous executive compensation, and mismanaged marketing that saw 29 banks involved in the deal.
The pork company’s second IPO saw investors scramble for shares in the company, with retail demand accounting for 55.22 times the shares on offer, said the company in a filing.
Proceeds from the successful IPO would help WH Group manage its debt after it acquired Virginia-based Smithfield Foods Inc in 2013 for $4.9 billion, the largest acquisition of a U.S. company by a Chinese firm.
Reuters reported that the deal could still raise as much as $2.4 billion for WH Group if BOC International and Morgan Stanley exercise an option to meet additional demand by issuing an additional 385.1 million shares.