Business
Limoneira Closes Sale of its Northern Properties for $100 Million
Sale Expected to be Accretive to Pro Forma EBITDA and Earnings Per Share and Significantly Reduce Overall Debt Proceeds will Strengthen the Balance Sheet and
About this update from Limoneira Co
[{"type":"text","content":"\nSale Expected to be Accretive to Pro Forma EBITDA and Earnings Per Share and Significantly Reduce Overall Debt\n\nProceeds will Strengthen the Balance Sheet and Enable Company to Pursue a Range of Strategic Opportunities to Maximize Shareholder Value\n\nSale will Accelerate the Company’s Strategic Plan for Asset Monetization with $130 Million of the $150 Million Identified Assets Sold in the Past Three Months\n\nCompany will Host a Conference Call to Discuss the Transaction on February 1, 2023 at 10:00 a.m. ET\n\n SANTA PAULA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--\nLimoneira Company (the “Company” or “Limoneira”) (Nasdaq: LMNR), a diversified citrus growing, packing, selling and marketing company with related agribusiness activities and real estate development operations, today announced the closing of the sale of its Northern Properties to PGIM Agricultural Investments (“PAI”), a business unit of PGIM Real Estate Finance, LLC (“PGIM”). The property consists of 3,537 acres in Tulare County, CA, comprised of a total of 2,700 planted acres, 231 acres of plantable ground and 606 acres of open space. The Company received approximately $99 million in net cash proceeds. As part of the transaction, Limoneira and PAI entered into a Farm Management Agreement for Limoneira to provide farming services related to the property for an initial term of one year. Additionally, Limoneira and PAI entered into a Grower Packing & Marketing Agreement for Limoneira to provide packing, marketing and selling services for lemons harvested on the property for a minimum five-year period.\n\nThis transaction aligns with the Company’s Strategic Plan as established by its Board of Directors at the beginning of 2022. Within the next 12 to 18 months, the Company expects to further realize the following goals of its Strategic Plan:\n\n\nTransition One World of Citrus™ to an “asset light” model\n\n\nStreamline operations and sell non-strategic assets\n\n\nImprove consistency of earnings\n\n\nIncrease EBITDA and Dividend Per Share\n\n\nReduce debt and right-size the balance sheet\n\n\nImprove Return on Invested Capital (ROIC)\n\n\nHarold Edwards, President, and Chief Executive Officer, stated, \"We expect the $100 million Northern Properties transaction will be accretive to EBITDA and earnings on a pro forma basis. In addition, it is a great example of the planned expansion...