Limoneira Company (NASDAQ: LMNR), a leading agribusiness with prime
agricultural land and operations, real estate and water rights in
California, today announced two asset sale transactions. On April 11,
2013, the Company completed the sale of 165,000 shares of Calavo
Growers, Inc. (“Calavo Growers”) (NASDAQ: CVGW) common stock to Calavo
Growers, who had a right of first refusal regarding the shares, at a
price of $29.02 per share, for net proceeds of approximately $4.8
million. A $3.1 million gain was recognized on the sale. The Company
continues to own 500,000 shares of Calavo Growers common stock, which
were acquired pursuant to a stock purchase agreement in 2005 for $10.00
per share.
On April 8, 2103, the Company entered into a purchase and sale agreement
of its non-core East Ridge property in located Santa Barbara County for
$6.0 million. The transaction is estimated to generate net proceeds of
approximately $5.7 million. After transaction costs, the Company
estimates that it will incur a non-cash impairment charge of
approximately $1.8 million. The East Ridge property is included in the
Company’s HM East Ridge LLC equity investment and was one of four real
estate development parcels located in Santa Maria, California The East
Ridge property is approved for 120 single family homes on approximately
40 acres and also includes approximately 3 acres that are zoned for
commercial use. The Company continues to own three other parcels in
Santa Barbara County within its Temple Santa Barbara LLC subsidiary that
are currently being entitled for development into apartment complexes.
The Company intends to use the net proceeds generated by the Calavo and
East Ridge transactions to reduce its long-term debt and to make
strategic investments into its growth initiatives, including real estate
development and agribusiness expansion.
Harold Edwards, President and Chief Executive Officer, stated, “These
recent transactions are in-line with our long-term strategy to
opportunistically monetize our assets in order to improve our balance
sheet and provide us with additional capital to invest into our
business, including investments into our real estate development
projects and potential agribusiness acquisition opportunities. Calavo
Growers is a leader in the avocado industry and is one of our key
agribusiness partners. We believe avocado consumption will continue to
expand for many years to come, which will benefit both Calavo Growers
and Limoneira. We continue to own a significant number of shares of
Calavo Growers stock, and remain confident in the long-term value of
this investment.”
About Limoneira Company
Limoneira Company, a 120-year-old international agribusiness
headquartered in Santa Paula, California, has grown to become one of the
premier integrated agribusinesses in the world. Limoneira (pronounced lē
mon΄âra) is a dedicated sustainability company with approximately 8,200
acres of rich agricultural lands, real estate properties and water
rights in California. The Company is a leading producer of lemons,
avocados, oranges, specialty citrus and other crops that are enjoyed
throughout the world. For more about Limoneira Company, visit www.limoneira.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the
meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and
Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These
forward-looking statements are based on Limoneira's current expectations
about future events and can be identified by terms such as "expect,"
"may," "anticipate," "intend," "should be," "will be," "is likely to,"
"strive to," and similar expressions referring to future periods.
Limoneira believes the expectations reflected in the forward-looking
statements are reasonable but cannot guarantee future results, level of
activity, performance or achievements. Actual results may differ
materially from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking
statements. Therefore, Limoneira cautions you against relying on
any of these forward-looking statements. Factors which may cause future
outcomes to differ materially from those foreseen in forward-looking
statements include, but are not limited to: changes in laws,
regulations, rules, quotas, tariffs and import laws; weather conditions
that affect production, transportation, storage, import and export of
fresh product; increased pressure from crop disease, insects and other
pests; disruption of water supplies or changes in water allocations;
pricing and supply of raw materials and products; market responses to
industry volume pressures; pricing and supply of energy; changes in
interest and currency exchange rates; availability of financing for land
development activities; political changes and economic crises;
international conflict; acts of terrorism; labor disruptions, strikes or
work stoppages; loss of important intellectual property rights;
inability to pay debt obligations; inability to engage in certain
transactions due to restrictive covenants in debt instruments;
government restrictions on land use; and market and pricing risks due to
concentrated ownership of stock. Other risks and uncertainties
include those that are described in Limoneira's SEC filings, which are
available on the SEC's website at http://www.sec.gov.
Limoneira undertakes no obligation to subsequently update or revise the
forward-looking statements made in this press release, except as
required by law.
