Gujarat Peanut BSE SME IPO review

•    The company is engaged in cleaning, grading, processing, sorting, trading, marketing of agri products like Peanuts all varieties, seeds, food grain and pulses.
•    It posted growth in its top and bottom lines for the reported fiscals.
•    It is operating in a highly competitive and fragmented segment.
•    Based on its recent financial data, the issue appears fully priced.
•    Wel-informed investors may park funds for medium to long term.

ABOUT COMPANY:
Gujarat Peanut & Agri Products Ltd. (GPAPL) is engaged into cleaning, grading, processing, sorting, buying, selling, trading and marketing of agricultural produce and commodities. Its product portfolio include products such as Peanut & Peanut products like Ground Nut Inshell, Ground Nut Oil, Ground Nut Seeds, Ground Nut Split, Groundnut Husk, Peanut Blanched, Peanut Rejection; seeds like Black Sesame Seed, Hulled Sesame Seeds, Sesame Seeds, Watermelon Seeds; spices like Coriander Seeds, Cumin Seeds, Fenugreek, Fennel Seed, Mustard Seed, Kalonji (Nigella Seeds); food grains and pulses like Brown Eye Beans, Chickpeas (Chana Dal), Green Moong, Kidney Eye Beans, Moong Dal, Pigeon Peas, Red Lentils, Urad (Urad Dal), Toor (Toor Dal), Yellow Peas, Soyabean.

The Company has major presence in the states of Gujarat, West Bengal, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, etc. Further, it exports products to countries such as UAE, China, Thailand, Indonesia, Iraq, Iran, Poland, Kosovo, Lebanon, and others. Majority of its exports include Sesame Seeds, Hulled Sesame Seeds, Groundnut Seeds, Blanched Peanut, Cumin Seeds, Kalonji. The company imports Sesame Seeds, Chickpeas, Pigeon Peas, Brown Eye Beans, Cumin Seeds, Soyabeans & Watermelon Seeds in India in bulk quantities. GPAPL imports majority of raw material from Sudan, Tanzania, China, Brazil, etc. It sells products in bulk quantities. The company follows standard packing process to ensure that quality and authentic taste of commodities remains intact.

The company currently operates from Manufacturing Plant situated at Survey No. 155/1P1/ P1, Rajkot-Jamnagar Road, Taraghadi, Paddhari, Rajkot, Gujarat, 360001, India spreading over an area of approx. 6,373.80 square meter. This processing unit has two sections – one section handles the post-harvest operations of peanuts, such as de-shelling, grading, sorting, roasting, blanching, packaging and quality control and another section handles cleaning, grading and sorting of seeds, spices and pulses. It is dedicated to constantly expanding and updating product range in order to stay ahead in the market. As of June 30, 2025, it had 18 employees on its payroll.

ISSUE DETAILS/CAPITAL HISTORY:
The company is coming out with its maiden IPO of 2976000 equity shares at a fixed price of Rs. 80 per share to mobilize Rs. 23.81 cr.  The IPO opens for subscription on September 25, 2025, and will close on September 29, 2025. The minimum application to be made is for 3200 shares and in multiple of 1600 shares thereon, thereafter. Post allotment, shares will be listed on BSE SME. The issue constitutes 29% of post-IPO paid-up equity capital of the company. The company is spending Rs. 2.72 cr. for this IPO process, and from the net proceeds of the issue, the company will utilize Rs. 6.86 cr. for working capital, Rs. 12.23 cr. capex purchase of additional plant & Machinery, and Rs. 2.00 cr. for general corporate purposes.

The IPO is solely lead managed by Finshore Management Services Ltd., while Integrated Registry Management Services Pvt. Ltd. is the registrar to the issue. Anant Securities is the market maker.

The company has issued initial equity shares at par, and issued further equity shares in the price range of Rs. 35 – Rs. 80 per share between June 2011 and September 2024. It has also issued bonus shares in the ratio of 5 for 1 in February 2024, and 1 for 3 in March 2024. The average cost of acquisition of shares by the promoters is Rs. 7.74, and Rs. 80.00 per share. 

Post-IPO, company’s current paid-up equity capital of Rs. 7.29 cr. will stand enhanced to Rs. 10.26 cr. Based on the upper price band of the IPO, the company is looking for a market cap of Rs. 82.10 cr. 

FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE:
On the financial performance front, for the last three fiscals, the company has posted a total Income/net profit, of Rs. 149.38 cr. / Rs. 0.82 cr. (FY23), Rs. 300.43 cr. / Rs. 3.95 cr. (FY24), Rs. 366.32 cr. / Rs. 6.50 cr. (FY25). It posted growth in its top and bottom lines for the reported periods. Its debt-equity ratio of 2.02 as of March 31, 2025 raise alarm.

For the last three fiscals, the company has reported an average EPS of Rs. 6.64, and an average RoNW of 31.44%. The issue is priced at a P/BV of 3.02 based on its NAV of Rs. 26.49 as of March 31, 2025, and at a P/BV of 1.57 based on its post-IPO NAV of Rs. 51.06 per share.

If we attribute its FY25 super earnings on post-IPO expanded equity base, then the asking price is at a P/E of 12.64, and based on its FY24 earnings, the P/E stands at 20.78. Thus, based on its recent consolidated financial data, the issue appears fully priced.

The company has posted PAT margins of 0.56% (FY23), 1.33% (FY24), 1.79% (FY25), and RoCE margins of 18.52%, 32.35%, 62.69%, respectively for the referred periods.

DIVIDEND POLICY:
The company has not declared any dividends for the reported periods of the offer document. It will adopt a prudent dividend policy, based on its financial performances and future prospects.

COMPARISON WITH LISTED PEERS:
As per the offer document, the company has no listed pers to compare with.

MERCHANT BANKER’S TRACK RECORDS:
This is the 28th mandate from Finshore Management in the last four fiscals. Out of the last 10 listings, 2 opened at discount, 1 at par, and the rest with premium ranging from 3.63% to 90% on the date of listing.