Austria"s Leipnik Lundenburger Invest Acquires 60% in Loulis

Austria"s Leipnik Lundenburger Invest (LLI) controled by the Raiffeisen group, yesterday acquired a majority stake of 60% in milling company Loulis Romania from Greek Loulis International Foods, in a deal worth 106.37 million RON (33.9 million EUR). Tranzacţia a fost încheiată la preţul de 0,434 lei pe acţiune, cu 10,88% sub preţul cu care au închis şedinţa anterioară de 0,4870 lei. Această tranzacţie dă companiei o valoare de piaţă de 177,28 milioane lei (56 milioane euro).

In May 2007 Loulis International Foods Enterprises and LLI had signed a letter of understanding regarding the acquisition of shares of Romanian SC Loulis SA and Bulgarian Sofia Mel SA (60 percent each) for 50 million EUR. To LLI, the entrance on the Romanian and Bulgarian markets is a major step in its strategy to expand into Eastern Europe, according to company representatives. LLI is controled by Raiffeisen Group. The Loulis group has two sites in Romania, in Bucharest and Targu Mures, where about 210,000 tons of grain per year are milled with about 900 employees.

Loulis Romania is one of the main producers of milling and bakery products and has a solid position on the market especially in Bucharest. The company posted a net profit of 3.089 million RON in the first quarter of the current year, down 22.7% from 4.05 million RON in the same period last year. Turnover rose by 48%, amounting to 50.18 million RON. For the current year, Loulis SA Ilfov expects a net profit of 11.14 million RON (3.33 million EUR), up 4 times from 2006, while total revenues should amount to 226.78 million RON.

The company has a share capital of 41 million RON (12 million EUR). The majority shareholder is Loulis international Foods Enterprises Ltd, with 86.09% in the company, followed by Katselis Sons SA with 10.15%. Loulis shares are traded on Tier 2 of the Bucharest Stock Exchange as MPN.