Ferd, an investment company owned by Norwegian billionaire Johan Andreson and his daughters, has divested from Broodstock Capital.
Ferd has held a major investment in Molde, Norway-based Broodstock Capital since it was established in 2016 to invest in small- and medium-sized businesses in the seafood industry, with a specific focus on the aquaculture supplier sector.
Broodstock Capital’s four partners – Jan Erik Løvik, Håkon Aglen Fredriksen, Pål Kristian Moe, and Roar Øverås – have bought out Ferd’s stake and will continue to operate the company as Broodstock Capital Partners AS.
“It has been a very fruitful collaboration with Ferd AS. We have made good investments together, developed great companies, and created value. There have been good discussions about the way forward, and we on the team are very grateful toward Ferd, which gives us the opportunity to take control over the future of Broodstock,” Broodstock Capital Managing Partner Jan Erik Løvik said in a press release.
Ferd Capital Investment Director Kristian Eikre said the decision to sell was made after Broodstock holdings Maritech and Åkerblå were sold recently.
“Broodstock Capital has been a great journey for Ferd, and we are proud of the companies we have developed together,” Eikre said in a press release. “We have also realized great value, and after we sold Åkerblå in 2023 and Maritech at the start of 2024, it was natural to have a chat about the way forward. Ferd will now concentrate its investments in seafood around fewer and larger direct investments. Ferd wishes the team at Broodstock the best of luck going forward.”
Following the transaction, Ferd will retain the shared stake in CAI Software, which recently purchased Maritech, while Broodstock will own AQ AS and NP Innovation AB and will manage Ferd’s stake in Calanus AS. Løvik said Broodstock Capital “will continue its core activity toward investments in companies that contribute to the sustainable industrialization of the seafood industry.”
“Our hypothesis from the establishment of Broodstock still stands. The industrialization of the seafood industry is still in an early phase, and it must be sustainable. Norway has a leading position, but there is still much to be done that will create opportunities for active owners,” Løvik said. “We have found our place and will continue as we have done for the past eight years. We will find good people and companies, invest as humble partners, and help develop these companies.”
Since its founding, Broodstock invested in Billund Aquaculture 2017, which it then sold in 2022, and has since made 16 other investments. Broodstock has taken ownership of AQ and NP Innovation and will continue the management of the Broodstock Capital II Fund, which contains holdings in Farvatn, Klaveness Marine, and 3S Invest. The fund has scored an average annual return of 30 percent, according to Broodstock.
“We strongly believe in land-based farming, and we here at Broodstock Capital have a very solid position through the investments in VAQ AS and NP Innovation AB. As part of the transaction, we are also buying Ferd's holdings in these companies together with a selection of new investors,” Broodstock Partner Pål Kristian Moe said.
Broodstock will be adding new investors as part of the change in ownership, including Ragnvald Risan, Christian Ness, Knut Ekjord, Erlend Torsen, Jacob Stolt-Nielsen, Nicolai Lorentzen, Joachim P. Johnsen, and Svein Tore Holsether. Kjell Bjordal and Per-Arnfinn Brekke will remain investors and advisors in Broodstock, along with Chairman Yngve Myhre – the former CEO of SalMar and Aker Seafoods and chairman of Nova Sea and Nova Austral.
“We have used the opportunity to associate ourselves with a competent and complementary investor group. They get to join a great journey in two very successful portfolio companies, while this also broadens the base for developing Broodstock as a management company,” Broodstock Partner Håkon A. Fredriksen said.
