Ceva Santé Animale announced Feb. 4 that it has renewed its shareholding structure, welcoming leading international investors to join long-term partners who will invest alongside management to secure the continued independent development of the group.

According to the announcement, Ceva's management, led by Marc Prikazsky, has reinforced its controlling position, supported by a core group of long-term investors known as "Ceva friends," who will ensure the continuing stable ownership of the group. The new investors in this block include:

These investors will join forces with long-standing shareholders -- in particular Sofiproteol and Merieux Equity Partners -- who will, once again, reinvest in this new round, Ceva said.

Alongside the management and Ceva friends, all historic minority investors have agreed to roll over a significant portion of their investment to further participate in and contribute to Ceva’s future growth, the company said. Leading the round was Temasek, a global investment company headquartered in Singapore, with participation from EMZ and Sagard of France and the Chinese private equity fund HOPU Investments.

Continental Grain Co. will also join this group, enabling the company to benefit from its expertise and network in agribusiness, notably in North America.

According to the announcement, Ceva has achieved sustained and profitable growth over the last 20 years, reaching more than 1.2 billion euros in revenues, and will now join the global top-five animal health companies.

Management became majority shareholders in 2007 and since then has consistently reinforced its ownership, thanks to Ceva’s performance and the trust of its financial partners. Ceva recently launched its latest Ambition 2025 business plan and will use the foundation of this new international shareholder base to continue its growth and secure the long-term, independent future of the group, the company said.

“I am delighted [for our employees and current shareholders] that we managed to successfully deliver returns to all our stakeholders. As we move to the next phase of our development, we are confident that we now have the best possible partners around the table and everything within our hands to continue our remarkable journey. We also would like to thank our advisors and their teams for their support, notably Isabelle Xoual (Lazard), David Aknin (Weil, Gotshal & Manges) and Hervé Couffin (Callisto),” Prikazsky said.

Ceva is a multinational veterinary pharmaceutical company that specializes in the innovation, development, production and marketing of pharmaceutical products and vaccines for livestock (ruminants, swine and poultry) and companion animals. Created in 1999 and based in France, Ceva is present in 46 countries and employs more than 6,000 people worldwide.