Chicken-processing company Pilgrim’s Pride Corp. of Pittsburg, Texas, has emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy after 13 months,
the Associated Press reported.
Under the terms of the reorganization, giant Brazilian beef and pork producer JBS SA now has a 64% stake in exchange for $800 million in cash, which will be used to pay back creditors,
according to the
Dallas Morning News.
The remaining 36% of the company’s common shares were redistributed to certain stockholders. The stock has begun trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol PPC. The AP report noted:
Pilgrim’s Pride continued to operate while in bankruptcy protection but underwent major changes — shuttering plants, cutting thousands of jobs and shedding production to improve its financial position.
The company emerged from bankruptcy with a $1.75 billion credit agreement. According to the AP report:
The influx of cash to Pilgrim’s Pride from the JBS deal and savings found during restructuring let the company repay its creditors in full — an unusual outcome in a corporate bankruptcy, as creditors aren’t often repaid.
Pilgrim’s Pride had been controlled by the Pilgrim family since its founding in 1946. In 2007, it surpassed Tyson as the largest U.S. Chicken producer with the hostile takeover of Gold Kist. (Sources: Associated Press, Dec. 29, 2009;
Dallas Morning News,
Dec. 29, 2009.)
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