Westrock Coffee Holdings LLC of Little Rock announced in its second-quarter earnings report that it plans to complete its merger with Riverview Acquisition Corp. of Memphis next week, closing a deal that will take the coffee and tea company public.
Riverview, a special purpose acquisition company, has scheduled a special meeting of its stockholders on Thursday to approve the deal. The company expects the deal to be finalized the next day and for Westrock to begin trading on the Nasdaq under the symbol “WEST” on Aug. 29.
The deal, announced in April, values Westrock at $1.086 billion and prices shares of the company at $10.
Westrock’s losses in the quarter narrowed to $5.8 million, down 4% from a $6.1 million loss in the same period last year. On a per-share basis, the loss was 4 cents, down from 7 cents.
Net sales for the period ending June 30 totaled $223.4 million, up 30.5% year-over-year from $171.1 million. Westrock reported a 57% increase in sales of single-serve cup products and a 20% increase in flavors, extracts and ingredients volume.
Sales in the company’s Sustainable Sourcing & Traceability (SS&T) segment grew to $52.5 million in the second quarter, up 43% year-over-year, driven by a 53% increase in average green coffee prices compared to the same period in 2021.
For the year to date, Westrock’s net sales have risen 24.8% to $319.2 million, compared to $261.7 million through the first six months of 2021.
“Like our customers, our results are not immune from the recent inflationary pressures experienced across the country, so we are pleased to see gasoline prices beginning to normalize,” CEO Scott Ford said in a news release. “Overall, we remain very well-positioned to meet our customers’ expanding product needs in both the short and long term which should enable us to deliver corresponding strong financial results over time.”
Westrock secured $300 million in financing from Wells Fargo to go public but increased that to $350 million in response to “strong demand from prospective lenders.” The funds will be used to refinance Westrock’s existing debt and fund its expansion plans, which include a $100 million manufacturing facility in Conway.
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