NEW YORK (AP) — Pet food maker FreshPet on Monday filed for an initial public offering valued at up to $100 million.
FreshPet Inc. didn't say when it plans to go public or how many shares it plans to sell. FreshPet says it makes its foods out of fresh meats and vegetables in a refrigerated facility and does not use contract manufacturers. Its products are sold through company-owned refrigerators in retail stores. FreshPet's fridges are located in about 12,600 retail stores, including Wal-Mart, PetCo, PetSmart, Target, and Kroger.
The Secaucus, New Jersey, company reported $39.7 million in revenue in the first half of 2014 and recorded a loss of $5.6 million. FreshPet had $63.2 million in revenue in 2013. In a form filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the company said it aims to have refrigerators in 35,000 stores and expects to benefit from increased pet ownership, an emphasis on healthy food, and "a growing trend of pet humanization as pet owners view their pets as family members."
FreshPet said it will use the proceeds of its IPO to pay back debt, add manufacturing capacity and install more refrigerators.
