Quarterly report pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d)

Acquisition and Dispositions

v3.5.0.2
Acquisition and Dispositions
9 Months Ended
Jun. 30, 2016
Business Combinations [Abstract]  
Acquisitions and Dispositions
Acquisitions and Dispositions

Acquisition of Orange-Co
 
On December 2, 2014, the Company completed the acquisition of certain citrus and related assets of Orange-Co, LP (“Orange-Co”), including 51% of the ownership interests of Citree, pursuant to an Asset Purchase Agreement, which is referred to as the Orange-Co Purchase Agreement, dated as of December 1, 2014. The assets the Company purchased include approximately 20,263 acres of citrus groves in DeSoto and Charlotte Counties, Florida, which comprise one of the largest contiguous citrus grove properties in the state of Florida. Total assets acquired were approximately $277,792,000, net of approximately $2,060,000 in cash acquired and approximately $4,838,000 in fair value attributable to noncontrolling interest in Citree, including: (i) approximately $147,500,000 in initial cash consideration funded from the proceeds of the sugarcane disposition and new term loan debt; (ii) up to $7,500,000 in additional cash consideration to be released from escrow in equal parts, subject to certain limitations, on December 1, 2015 and June 1, 2016; (iii) the refinancing of Orange-Co’s outstanding debt including approximately $92,290,000 in term loan debt and a working capital facility of approximately $27,857,000 and (iv) the assumption of certain other liabilities totaling approximately $4,705,000. On December 1, 2014, Alico deposited an irrevocable standby letter of credit issued by Rabo Agrifinance, Inc. in the aggregate amount of $7,500,000 into an escrow account to fund the additional cash consideration. On December 1, 2015 and June 1, 2016, the Company paid $3,750,000 of additional consideration on the Orange-Co acquisition, as contemplated by the Orange-Co Purchase Agreement. The Company's $3,750,000 irrevocable letter of credit securing the final payment of the additional consideration was terminated following the final cash consideration payment.
 
This acquisition was accounted for under the acquisition method of accounting. Accordingly, the Company recognized amounts for identifiable assets acquired and liabilities assumed at their estimated acquisition date fair values, while transaction and integration costs associated with the acquisition were expensed as incurred. The excess of the purchase price over the fair value of assets acquired, net of liabilities assumed, and noncontrolling interests is recognized as goodwill. All goodwill recognized will be deductible for income tax purposes.

On the acquisition date, the initial accounting for the business combination was not complete, and the total assets acquired and liabilities assumed were based on preliminary information and were subject to adjustment as new information was obtained. As a result of refinements to the preliminary purchase price allocation, an adjustment to the fair value of total assets acquired resulted in an increase of approximately $1,000,000 during the fiscal year ended September 30, 2015.

For the nine months ended June 30, 2015 the Company incurred approximately $3,239,000 in professional and legal costs in connection with the Orange-Co acquisition. There were approximately $202,000 in costs incurred for the three months ended June 30, 2015. These costs are included in general and administrative expenses in the Condensed Combined Consolidated Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Income.
 
The following table summarizes the final allocation of the acquisition cost to the assets acquired and liabilities assumed at the date of acquisition, based on their estimated fair values:
    
Asset acquisition
 
(in thousands)
 
 
Amount
Assets:
 
Accounts receivable
$
888

Other current assets
845

Inventories
35,562

Property and equipment:


Citrus Trees
164,123

Land
63,395

Equipment and other facilities
13,431

Goodwill
2,246

Other assets
2,140

Total assets, net of cash acquired
$
282,630

 
 
Liabilities:
 
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities
$
4,205

Debt
500

Contingent consideration
7,500

Total liabilities assumed
$
12,205

 
 
Assets acquired less liabilities assumed
$
270,425

 
 
Less: fair value attributable to noncontrolling interest
(4,838
)
 
 
Total purchase consideration
$
265,587

 
 
Cash proceeds from sugarcane disposition
$
97,126

Working capital line of credit
27,857

Term loans
140,604

 
 
Total purchase consideration
$
265,587



Sugarcane Land
 
On November 21, 2014, the Company completed the sale of approximately 36,000 acres of land used for sugarcane production and land leasing in Hendry County, Florida to Global Ag Properties, LLC (“Global”) for approximately $97,900,000 in cash. It had previously leased approximately 30,600 of these acres to United States Sugar Corporation (the “USSC Lease”). The USSC Lease was assigned to Global in conjunction with the land sale.

Net cash proceeds from the sugarcane land sale of approximately $97,126,000 were deposited with a Qualified Intermediary in anticipation of the Orange-Co asset acquisition in a tax deferred like-kind exchange, pursuant to Internal Revenue Code Section 1031.

The sales price is subject to post-closing adjustments over a ten (10) year period. The Company realized a gain of approximately $42,753,000 on the sale. Initially, $29,140,000 of the gain was deferred due to the Company’s continuing involvement in the property pursuant to a post-closing agreement and the potential price adjustments. The deferral represents the Company’s estimate of the maximum exposure to loss as a result of the continuing involvement. A net gain of approximately $13,613,000 was recognized at the time of the sale and is recognized in Other (expense) income in the Condensed Combined Consolidated Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Income for the nine months ended June 30, 2015.

In May 2016 and 2015, the Company made payments of $1,702,000 and $1,347,000, respectively, to Global pursuant to the sales contract. The amount of USSC’s lease is tied to the market price of sugar, and the Company's payment is required annually in advance, to supplement the lease paid by USSC in the event that the sugar prices are below certain thresholds. The 2015 sugar price remained below the threshold and therefore none of the amount advanced in 2015 will be returned to the Company. Approximately $1,587,000 of advance payments is included in prepaid expenses and other current assets in the Condensed Combined Consolidated Balance Sheet as of June 30, 2016, and the Company has recognized approximately $355,000 in interest expense and approximately $(284,000) of the deferred gain for the three months ended June 30, 2016, and approximately $1,051,000 in interest expense and approximately $618,000 of the deferred gain for the nine months ended June 30, 2016.

As a result of the disposition of its sugarcane land, the Company is no longer involved in sugarcane operations and, as of November 21, 2014, the Improved Farmland segment was no longer material to our business; however, the sugarcane operation has not been classified as a discontinued operation due to the post-closing adjustments, amongst other involvement, as described above. Effective October 1, 2015, the Improved Farmland reporting segment is now included in the Other Operations reporting segment.