Moa raises $329k from US investor at a premium

Moa raises $329k from US investor at a premium, Allan Scott leaves board

By Paul McBeth

Aug. 1 (BusinessDesk) - Moa Group, the craft beer brewer, has raised about $329,000 from a US investor who paid a 6.8 percent premium for the small shareholding, and announced a board reshuffle with the exit of founding director and pioneering winemaker Allan Scott.

The Marlborough-based brewer sold almost 628,000 shares, or 1.2 percent of the company, at 59.34 cents apiece to an unidentified US investor, more than the 49 cents the stock last traded at.

Chief executive Geoff Ross said the investor had followed Moa for some time and was "keen to be a part of the brand's growth and the growth of craft beer".

Separately, Moa announced the departure of Scott to "focus on his family business interests". Scott, whose son Josh founded Moa in 2003, helped establish Corbans' Marlborough vineyards in 1980 and went on to launch his own Allan Scott Wines in 1990.

Sheena Henderson, a former Fonterra Cooperative Group senior manager, has been appointed an independent director to Moa. She is currently a director of NZX-listed retailer Smith City, Manuka honey firm Watson & Son, pet food maker Natural Food Group, and industry group NZPork.

Moa narrowed its annual loss to $2.4 million in the year ended March 31 on a 26 percent gain in revenue to $10.3 million. As at March 31, the brewer had cash of $2.7 million after raising $3.8 million in the year, helping offset a $2 million cash outflow from its operations.

In Moa's annual report, Ross and chairman Ashley Waugh said the company had enough cash on hand to reach a positive cash flow position.

(BusinessDesk)

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