“Blue Buffalo is dedicated to providing high-quality, natural food for pets”, said Bob Greifeld, CEO, Nasdaq.
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(3) Based in Wilmington, NC, Live Oak Bancshares (LOB) scheduled a $68 million IPO on Nasdaq with a market capitalization of $555 million at a price range midpoint of $17 for the week of July 20, 2015.
Founded in 2002 by Bill Bishop and his two sons, Blue Buffalo began as a response to consumers’ interest in healthier foods for pets. Americans are increasingly treating their cats and dogs like an extension of the family.
The shares were up over 30% as of late afternoon trading, and with another $49 billion pet food market outside of the U.S.to tap into as well, Blue Buffalo Pet Products could be pushing higher for many years to come.
Up to 5% of the shares of common stock offered in the offering will be reserved for sale, through a platform administered by LOYAL3, to individual investors so that they can have a chance to buy shares of Blue Buffalo at the same price and at the same time as institutional investors in the offering. In addition, Blue Buffalo will be issuing up to 35,934 shares to approximately 1,700 non-management employees at no cost to them. According to its prospectus, this makes it the top advertiser “in the Wholesome Natural market segment”. Mr. Schmidt serves as the Chief Executive Officer of Blue Buffalo Company, Ltd. He has extensive leadership experience with Kraft, Wrigley, Novartis and Nestle. All of the 29 million shares offered are from selling shareholders which means that the company will not receive any of the proceeds from the deal for future growth spending. Mr. Schmidt has a Bachelor of Science Degree in Chemistry from United States Naval Academy, Annapolis and an MBA from University of Chicago. Blue Buffalo now has roughly 6% share of the overall pet food industry and feeds only 2% to 3% of the 164 million pets in the United States. Last year Purina filed a lawsuit alleging Blue Buffalo engaged in false advertising by including chicken and artificial preservatives in certain products.
Along with other major food producers, BUFF faces the risks of maintaining/enhancing the quality, safety, and integrity of its products. In a quiet week for IPOs, BUFF could garner even more attention.
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Eric Volkman has no position in any stocks mentioned. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions.
