Rating Release

Agusto & Co. hereby assigns a “Bbb” rating to Johnvents Industries Limited

The rating expires on 30 June 2024.

Agusto & Co. hereby assigns a “Bbb” rating to Johnvents Industries Limited (“Johnvents” or “the Company”). The assigned rating underpins the Company’s good profitability metrics, satisfactory cash flow position upheld by its favourable terms with customers and low leverage. The rating also considers the Company’s good position in the cocoa processing value chain, the strong domestic and foreign demand for processed cocoa products, which we expect to continue to positively influence its business fundamentals in the near to medium term and a qualified and experienced management team. Nonetheless, the rating is constrained by the Company’s inadequate working capital position, concerns over its concentrated ownership profile, a corporate governance structure that requires improvement and rising cost pressures amid the prevailing macroeconomic headwinds in the country.

Johnvents Industries Limited, incorporated as a limited liability company in 2014, is a fully integrated indigenous agro-industrial entity. Johnvents was originally a trading business but transitioned to an agro-processing entity in 2022 following the acquisition of Coop Cocoa Factory from Olam Group in 2021. As a result, the Company reported significant top-line growth in 2022. Johnvents Industries Limited produces and supplies processed cocoa products including – cocoa butter and cocoa cake, which are majorly exported to Europe, Asia and South Africa. The Company is also involved in the sourcing, cleaning and trading of other agricultural produce including sesame seeds and soybeans.

The opinions expressed in this rating release do not represent any investment or other advice and should therefore not be construed as such. Visit www.agusto.com for further information.