Jacksonville-based Southeastern Grocers (SEG), the parent company of Winn-Dixie, Harveys Supermarkets, BI-LO and Fresco y Más supermarkets, has confirmed to WJCT News that it has taken an initial step toward becoming a publicly traded company.
SEG spokesman Joe Caldwell said, “SEG confidentially submitted a draft registration statement on Form S-1 with the Securities and Exchange Commission” relating to a potential initial public offering of its common stock.
He also sent WJCT News a copy of the statement the grocer released on Business Wire Monday evening, which read, in part:
“The shares in the proposed offering are expected to be offered by existing stockholders of the Company. This process will help enable the Company to make the decision to become publicly traded, subject to market and other conditions.
When asked for additional details, Caldwell told WJCT News, “We cannot predict with certainty when or if the IPO will occur and the final timeline has not yet been determined. There remain a number of steps that need to be undertaken before the IPO can be completed, should we continue down this path.”
According to a report in Grocery Dive, the company had previously filed for an IPO in 2013 but withdrew its plan in 2014 for unspecified reasons.
SEG was formed in 2012, after Winn-Dixie Stores Inc. merged with BI-LO LLC. Both Winn-Dixie and Bi-Lo went through Chapter 11 restructurings before their merger. And SEG itself also filed for a Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization in 2018.
SEG currently operates more than 520 stores across Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina and South Carolina.
Note: This is a developing story, which will be updated as more information becomes available.
Heather Schatz can be reached at hschatz@wjct.org or on Twitter at @heatherschatz.
