Mission Produce Inc (AVO) Quote

AVO 10Q due March 11

Mission Produce to Launch Mission Jumbos ‘More to Eat, More to Love’

https://investors.missionproduce.com/news-releases/news-release-details/mission-produce-launch-mission-jumbos-more-eat-more-love

November 19, 2020
Perfect for Consumers Looking to Feed the Whole Household
Company Continues Investment in Sustainability with More Environmentally Conscious Packaging

OXNARD, Calif., Nov. 19, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Mission Produce, Inc. (Nasdaq: AVO) (“Mission” or the “Company”), the world leader in sourcing, producing, and distributing fresh avocados, today announced the launch of Mission Jumbos, a pack full of larger, shareable avocados that offer more to eat and more to love.

Mission Jumbos expands Mission Produce’s existing lineup of avocado offerings, which includes Mission Minis and Emeralds in the Rough. The Mission Jumbos offering was created in response to consumer trends indicating that people are increasingly incorporating avocados into their everyday diets and preparing more meals themselves as they continue to work, learn, and play at home. This shift in behavior and lifestyle has changed consumer buying habits, causing them to prefer and purchase multiple, larger sized avocados to last through the week.

“Consumers shop for their avocados based on how they plan to use them and who they’re feeding, and now they’re shopping for more people while making fewer trips to the store per week. That’s where the Mission Jumbos shareable serving avocado comes in,” says Denise Junqueiro, Senior Director of Marketing and Communications at Mission Produce. “Avocados have become a dietary staple in consumers’ minds, and we are excited to be able to expand our product offering to meet evolving consumer preferences.”

Mission’s lineup of avocado offerings performs two to one in the market compared to similar offerings by competitors. “Mission’s products and programs are based on consumer preferences, designed to draw consumer attention and grow sales,” said Brooke Becker, Sales Director at Mission Produce. “Retailers featuring any of the products from our lineup are seeing the profits.”

Mission Jumbos is the first bag to be launched under Mission’s new reduced plastic initiative. Boasting a plastic reduction of 12%, the Mission Jumbos contain less plastic in its netting and film than the average avocado bag. As part of the Company’s continued investment in sustainability, Mission is working with its vendors across the supply chain to reduce the amount of plastic used while maintaining product integrity.

“We’re always looking for more sustainable ways to do business,” said Patrick Cortes, Senior Director of Business Development at Mission Produce. “We spent countless hours perfecting the Mission Jumbos avocado pack with our R&D team and are extremely proud of the end product, which is something that both consumers and retailers can feel good about.”

About Mission Produce, Inc.:

Mission Produce is the world’s most advanced avocado network and recognized leader in the worldwide avocado business. For over 35 years Mission has been sourcing, producing and distributing fresh avocados, servicing retail, wholesale and foodservice customers in over 25 countries. The vertically integrated Company owns 11,000 acres globally and operates four state-of-the-art avocado packing facilities in key growing locations including California, Mexico & Peru and has additional sourcing capabilities in Chile, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Guatemala, New Zealand, & South Africa. Mission’s global distribution network includes eleven forward distribution centers in North America, China & Europe that offer value-added services such as ripening, bagging, custom packing and logistical management. Mission is the largest global supplier of the World’s Finest Avocados, for more information please visit worldsfinestavocados.com.

Contact
Denise Junqueiro
Senior Director of Marketing and Communications
Mission Produce, Inc.
press@missionproduce.com

Supplemental Materials:

Product Photos:
https://ql.mediasilo.com/ql/5fb59a68e4b0aac632c3914d
https://ql.mediasilo.com/ql/5fb5945be4b082ecd28817e6

Headshots:
Denise Junqueiro
Brooke Becker
Patrick Cortes

UPDATE: Shares of avocado producer Mission Produce soared 18% after trading began on Thursday.

By Tonya Garcia

The avocado company priced its initial public offering at $12 on Wednesday, below the price range between $15 to $17 . Mission Produce also downsized its IPO, offering 8 million shares, down from 9,375,000 shares previously.

The stock is listed on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol "AVO." BofA Securities , JPMorgan and Citigroup were the active bookrunners.

Founded in 1983, the California -based business intends to use the proceeds from the offering for working capital and other general corporate purposes. Sales for the fiscal year ending Oct. 31, 2019 , were $883.3 million . Chief Executive Stephen Barnard founded the company and serves as a director.

According to U.S. Department of Agriculture data provided by Mission Produce Inc. , avocado consumption has grown from 1.1 billion pounds in 2008 to 2.6 billion pounds in 2018. Meanwhile, the average retail price of Hass avocados, the dominant avocado on the market, reached $2.57 per pound in 2019, up 6% from 2018.

Mission Produce Inc. is rooted in this growing industry, with packing facilities in the U.S. , Mexico and Peru ; 11 distribution and ripening centers across the U.S. , Canada , China and the Netherlands ; and three sales offices in the U.S. , China and the Netherlands .

The company is planning to open a new distribution and ripening center in Texas , which will be key for avocados coming into the U.S. from Mexico . The company also owns more than 10,000 acres of land in Peru .

The Hass Avocado Board expects the U.S. Hass avocado market to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5.5% from 2019 to 2023, reaching revenue of $8 billion owing to factors like health and wellness trends, year-round accessibility and the ready-to-eat nature of the food, which has been helped by sourcing and ripening improvements.

The consumption rate of the growing U.S. Latinx population is 45% higher than non-Latinx households. And millennials are fans, with 60.1% of millennial households purchasing avocados in 2018 versus 51.3% of non-millennial households.

Avocados are also growing in popularity abroad with the EU the second biggest import market. There was a market disruption in 2019, with crops damaged by heavy rainfall in Peru , which drove a 26.1% decline in imports to the EU, Mission Produce said in its prospectus. But the region will experience "robust" growth again in the future.

Mexico , Peru and California are the primary sources for Mission Produce , and the company has partnerships with a network of growers. Fresh Del Monte Inc. (FDP) are among its key competitors.
The Renaissance IPO ETF (IPO) is up 65.2% for the year to date while the S&P 500 index has gained 2.1% for the period.

Here are five things to know

The company isn't sure it will pay a dividend. "We have paid cash dividends on our capital stock in the past but cannot guarantee that we will continue to do so in the future," the prospectus says.

"Any determination to pay dividends in the future will be at the discretion of our board of directors and will depend upon results of operations, financial condition, any contractual restrictions, our indebtedness, restrictions imposed by applicable law and other factors our board of directors deems relevant."

Nearly two-thirds of sales are generated through a few clients. Primary customers include Walmart Inc. (WMT), Costco Wholesale Corp. (COST) and Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (CMG) Kroger Co. (KR) is the company's top customer, accounting for about 14% of the company's total sales for the six months ending April 30, 2020 .

Sales to the company's 10 largest customers accounted for about 65% of all sales for the same period.
Mission Produce has had relationships with many of its customers for decades. The company has worked with all of its top 10 customers of fiscal 2019 for at least 10 years.

Food safety is a concern. "Food safety events, including instances of food-borne illness involving avocados, could create negative publicity for our customers and adversely affect sales and operating results," the company said in its prospectus.

The business could be affected by economic or political issues in Mexico and Peru . Mission Produce's business is dependent on the border to the U.S. from Mexico remaining open. Problems with organized crime and drug-related violence in Mexico have also impacted avocado production and shipment. And the country has experienced occasional grower strikes.

In Peru , past political regimes have imposed price controls, import limits, and have put other policies in place that could impact Mission Produce's business. In 2018, there was also political instability tied to ongoing corruption investigations.

And this month (https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/11/world/americas/peru-impeachment-president-martin-vizcarra.html? auth=login-email&login=email), impeachment hearings against President Martín Vizcarra began. Peru has the highest per capita death toll from coronavirus in the world.

It is facing lawsuits related to its labor practices. As of April 30, 2020 , Mission Produce had 3,700 employees, including 481 in the U.S. , 648 in Mexico and 2,544 in Peru . Fewer than 10 workers in an Illinois distribution and ripening center are unionized.

The company hires temporary workers on farms in Peru .

"We believe that our employee relations are good," the company said in its prospectus.

On April 23, 2020 former employees filed a class-action lawsuit in Los Angeles , alleging violation of certain California labor laws, including failure to pay all overtime wages and minimum wage violations.
And on June 10, 2020 , former employees filed a class-action lawsuit, also in Los Angeles , alleging similar violations.

Additional reporting by Tomi Kilgore .

*An earlier version of this report included a reference to Chipotle, which Mission Produce has removed from its prospectus. The story has been updated to reflect that change.
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Mission Produce, Inc. FORM S-1 Prospectus

https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1802974/000119312520250637/d829132ds1a.htm

Mission Produce Website-
https://worldsfinestavocados.com

https://www.facebook.com/missionavocados

https://www.linkedin.com/company/mission-produce-inc-

https://twitter.com/missionavocados

https://www.instagram.com/missionavocados/

Mission Produce Announces Pricing of Initial Public Offering

OXNARD, Calif., Sept. 30, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Mission Produce, Inc. (“Mission” or the “Company”) today announced the pricing of its initial public offering of 8,000,000 shares of its common stock, consisting of 6,250,000 shares being offered by the Company and 1,750,000 shares being offered by certain selling stockholders, at a price to the public of $12.00 per share. In addition, the underwriters have been granted a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 1,200,000 shares of common stock from the Company. The shares are expected to begin trading on the NASDAQ Global Select Market on October 1, 2020, under the symbol “AVO.” The closing of the offering is expected to occur on October 5, 2020, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions.

BofA Securities, J.P. Morgan and Citigroup are acting as bookrunning managers for the offering. Roth Capital Partners, Stephens Inc. and D.A. Davidson & Co. are acting as co-managers.

A registration statement relating to these securities has been filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and was declared effective on September 30, 2020. The offering will be made only by means of a prospectus. A copy of the final prospectus relating to the offering may be obtained, when available, from: BofA Securities, NC1-004-03-43, 200 North College Street, 3rd floor, Charlotte NC 28255-0001, Attention: Prospectus Department, or via email: dg.prospectus_requests@bofa.com; J.P. Morgan, c/o Broadridge Financial Solutions, 1155 Long Island Avenue, Edgewood, NY 11717, or by telephone at (866) 803-9204, or by email at prospectus-eq_fi@jpmchase.com; or Citigroup, c/o Broadridge Financial Solutions, 1155 Long Island Avenue, Edgewood, NY 11717, or by telephone at: (866) 803-9204.

This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy these securities, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or jurisdiction. Any offers, solicitations or offers to buy, or any sales of securities will be made in accordance with the registration requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.

https://worldsfinestavocados.com/news/mission-produce-announces-pricing-of-initial-public-offering

Mission Produce shares soar 18% as trading begins
Published: Oct. 1, 2020 at 12:39 p.m. ET
By Tonya Garcia

Mission Produce Inc. AVO, 18.42% shares jumped 18.8% after trading began Thursday at 12:15 pm ET. The avocado company priced at $12 on Wednesday, below the price range between $15 to $17. Mission Produce also downsized its IPO, offering 8 million shares, down from 9,375,000 shares previously. Mission Produce is trading under the ticker "AVO" on the Nasdaq. BofA Securities, JPMorgan and Citigroup were the active bookrunners. Proceeds from the IPO will be used for general corporate purposes and working capital. The California-based company has packing facilities in the U.S., Mexico and Peru and 11 distribution and ripening centers around the world.

https://www.marketwatch.com/story/mission-produce-shares-soar-18-as-trading-begins-2020-10-01?mod=mw_quote_news