Sanderson Farms plans to sell 2 million shares to pay for construction of its poultry processing plant under construction in Kinston and another new facility planned near Goldsboro.
The Mississippi-based company last summer revived plans for the $121 million processing campus in Kinston, including a new feed mill, poultry processing plant and hatchery. Sanderson had postponed plans for the plant in June 2008 amid soaring feed and fuel costs.
The operation is expected open next year and eventually employ up to 1,500 people, providing a major economic boost for Lenoir County, about 90 miles southeast of Raleigh.
On Monday, the company also announced plans to build a $94 million bird deboning facility near Goldsboro. That operation could employ up to 1,100 people and is scheduled to open in 2012.
The two facilities will increase Sanderson's processing capacity by 30 percent.
"This planned expansion in North Carolina will support our growth strategy," said CEO Joe F. Sanderson Jr., in a prepared statement.
Based on today's stock price of $56.14, Sanderson could raise as much as $112 million before expenses in the stock sale. The company also could sell 300,000 more shares if there is enough investor demand.
The stock has climbed nearly 50 percent in the past year, as demand for processed chicken increases and costs for feed and other expenses retreat.
