NewTimeSpace | IPO Watch: Muyuan Foods, the "Pig King", Goes Public in Hong Kong, Demonstrating Full-Industry-Chain Resilience at the Cycle Bottom
Muyuan Foods Co., Ltd. (02714.HK) officially kicked off its H - share offering on January 29, 2026. The maximum offer price is set at HK$39.00 per share, with each trading lot consisting of 100 shares and an entry cost of HK$3,939.34. The company is scheduled to be listed on the Main Board of HKEX on February 6, 2026. It plans to offer 274 million shares globally, aiming to raise a maximum of approximately HK$10.68 billion.
Known as the "Pig King" that has topped the global pig slaughter volume rankings for four consecutive years, Muyuan Foods' cost - control capabilities and full - industry - chain resilience amid the industry's cyclical downturn have become the focus of market attention. The company has successfully brought in 15 cornerstone investors for this offering, who together have subscribed for up to US$685 million (approximately HK$5.34 billion), accounting for about 50% of the offered shares. The list includes industrial capitals such as Charoen Pokphand Foods, Wilmar International and Sinochem Hong Kong, as well as top asset management firms like Fidelity and UBS Asset Management, which strongly endorses the listing of this cyclical leader in Hong Kong.
Core Highlights: Global Pig - Breeding Leader with a Vertically Integrated Moat
Muyuan Foods' core competitiveness is built on its unmatched scale. According to the prospectus reviewed by NewTimeSpace, since 2021, the company has ranked first in the world in terms of pig production capacity and slaughter volume for four consecutive years. In 2024, its pig slaughter volume reached 71.6 million heads, and its global market share soared from 2.6% in 2021 to 5.6%, exceeding the combined market share of the world's second to fourth - ranked competitors. By the end of 2024, the company had the world's largest pig production capacity of 81 million heads and operated more than 1,000 farms across 23 provinces in China. This overwhelming scale serves as the fundamental source of its cost advantages in procurement, production, financing and other links.
In addition, unlike the traditional "company + farmer" model, Muyuan Foods adheres to a fully vertically integrated self - breeding model covering the entire chain from breeding, feed production, pig rearing to slaughtering. This enables the company to achieve the ultimate standardization and cost control in all production links. During the industry downturn (such as 2023), the company could flexibly adjust the slaughter structure of piglets and breeding pigs and resist fluctuations in raw material prices through its internal feed system. Data shows that its average total cost per kilogram of pigs has continuously decreased from RMB 15.72 in 2022 to RMB 12.19 in the first nine months of 2025, demonstrating industry - leading cost - control capabilities.
To smooth out the pig cycle, the company has vigorously expanded its downstream slaughtering and meat business since 2019. Leveraging the stable supply of pigs from its upstream breeding business, this segment has grown rapidly. In terms of slaughter volume in 2024, it ranked fifth globally and first in China. From 2022 to 2024, the compound annual growth rate of this business's revenue was the highest among large - scale peers in China. The proportion of revenue from the slaughtering and meat business has increased from 11.8% in 2022 to 28.5% in the first nine months of 2025, making it an important performance stabilizer and a new growth engine.
Financial Performance: Distinct Cyclical Nature and Great Profit Elasticity
Muyuan Foods' financial data vividly reflects the cycle of the pig industry, showing the typical characteristics of "high volatility and high elasticity".
Revenue fluctuates with pig prices while the scale expands steadily. The company's revenue dropped from RMB 124.83 billion in 2022 to RMB 110.86 billion in 2023, a year - on - year decrease of 11.2%, mainly affected by the sharp decline in pig prices in 2023. Then, it rebounded to RMB 137.95 billion in 2024 as pig prices recovered, a year - on - year increase of 24.4%. Notably, despite the fluctuations in pig prices, the company's pig slaughter volume maintained steady growth, rising from 61.2 million heads in 2022 to [incomplete data]. Its net profit margin stood at 12.0% in 2022. Due to the industry's severe losses in 2023, the company recorded a net loss of RMB 4.17 billion. However, with the recovery of pig prices in 2024, it achieved a net profit of RMB 18.93 billion, with a net profit margin of 13.7%. This "roller - coaster" - like performance profoundly reveals the industry's strong cyclical nature. Nevertheless, Muyuan's loss margin at the cycle bottom is relatively controllable, and its profit elasticity at the cycle peak is more prominent, which confirms the effectiveness of its cost - leadership strategy.
Strong cash flow supports continuous expansion and shareholder returns. Despite profit fluctuations, the company has maintained a strong operating cash flow performance. In 2024, its operating cash inflow reached RMB 37.54 billion, 3.0 times its capital expenditure for the year. In the first nine months of 2025, this ratio further rose to 3.9 times. This indicates that the early capital investment has entered the payback period, and the company has sufficient self - financing capacity. The company also attaches great importance to shareholder returns and has declared a total dividend of RMB 16.593 billion since 2022.
Offering Details: A Luxury Cornerstone Investor Lineup Combining Industrial and Financial Capital
Muyuan Foods plans to offer 274 million shares globally in its H - share offering, with a maximum offer price of HK$39.00 per share, aiming to raise a maximum of approximately HK$10.68 billion. The trading lot is set at 100 shares, and the entry cost is HK$3,939.34, which is relatively affordable and is expected to attract more retail investors to participate.
After sorting out the prospectus, NewTimeSpace found that the most eye - catching part of this offering is its lineup of heavyweight cornerstone investors. A total of 15 cornerstone investors have agreed to subscribe for a combined US$685 million (approximately HK$5.34 billion). Based on the maximum offer price of HK$39 per share, they will subscribe for about 137 million shares, accounting for 50.0% of the globally offered shares.
Charoen Pokphand Foods, a Thai agricultural and food giant, led the subscription with US$200 million. Wilmar International (whose brands include Arowana) subscribed for US$70 million. Other industrial investors include Sinochem Hong Kong and Midea Development Holdings (an affiliate of Midea Group).
Internationally, top asset management firm Fidelity subscribed for US$80 million, and well - known institutions such as UBS Asset Management (Singapore) also joined in. Domestically, the participation of insurance funds like Ping An Life Insurance and Dajia Life Insurance, as well as top private equity firms such as High - Go Capital, demonstrates the recognition of both domestic and foreign institutions for the company's long - term value. In addition, world - class hedge funds including Millennium and Jane Street also participated.
Risk Focus: Unavoidable Challenges of Cycles, Costs and Biological Assets
The core of investing in Muyuan lies in balancing its outstanding capabilities in cost control and management efficiency against the significant pig cycle risks in the industry.
Industry risk of cyclical fluctuations in pig prices. The company's profitability is highly tied to the market price of pigs. The industry - wide losses in 2023 and the further decline in pig prices in 2025 have clearly shown the impact of this risk. Although the company strives to smooth out fluctuations through its full - industry - chain model and cost - control measures, it cannot completely eliminate them. Investors need to be prepared for substantial performance fluctuations and make independent judgments on the position of the pig cycle.
Dual pressures from raw material costs and animal diseases. Feed costs account for nearly 60% of the operating costs. The prices of corn and soybean meal, the main raw materials, are affected by multiple factors such as weather, trade policies and geopolitics, and their fluctuations are unpredictable. Meanwhile, the risk of outbreaks of major animal diseases like African swine fever always exists. If an outbreak occurs, it may cause devastating damage to production and trigger a consumer confidence crisis.
High debt and biological asset impairment risks. As of September 30, 2025, the company had a net current liability of RMB 16.24 billion and a high total interest - bearing debt. During the industry downturn, high debt will increase financial pressure. In addition, the company has a large amount of consumable biological assets (pigs, with a carrying value of approximately RMB 29.97 billion) and productive biological assets (breeding pigs, with a carrying value of approximately RMB 7.74 billion) on its books. If the pig price remains below the cost for a long time, it may lead to huge asset impairment losses, which will directly erode profits.
Summary
Muyuan Foods' listing in Hong Kong provides investors with a rare opportunity to participate in the integration of the global pig - breeding industry and the growth of a leading enterprise. Its unparalleled scale position, continuously deepening cost moat and rapidly emerging downstream business constitute its core capabilities to survive the industry cycle. The luxurious and diversified lineup of cornerstone investors has injected strong confidence into this offering.
However, investors still need to carefully weigh the main challenges it faces. The inherent strong cyclical nature of the pig industry determines that the company's performance is highly linked to pig prices and may fluctuate significantly. Fluctuations in feed raw material costs and the potential threat of major animal diseases pose ongoing operational risks. In addition, the company's debt structure and the value of biological assets closely related to market prices should also be taken into account.
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