As JBS secures shareholder approval to dual list on the New York and Brazilian stock exchanges, the claims process has also begun in the company’s $83.5 million settlement with ranching groups over anticompetitive practices.
In late May, JBS minority shareholders approved the company’s proposal for a dual stock exchange listing. J&F and BNDESPar, the company’s largest shareholders, abstained from voting.
While the company is currently trading on the São Paulo Stock Exchange (B3), it has not been listed on the New York Stock Exchange. The company expects to begin trading in New York on June 12.
“With the dual listing, we seek a corporate structure that better reflects our global presence and diversified international operations, while facilitating the implementation of our growth and value-creation strategy,” said Guilherme Cavalcanti, JBS Global chief financial officer.
Cavalcanti continued that the dual listing was expected to unlock more value for the company by providing broader access to investors and more competitive interest rates, “thereby expanding our ability to finance growth at a lower cost and accelerating our diversification strategy.”
The process of dual listing has been contentious, with environmental groups and some lawmakers criticizing the move, citing concerns about corruption, price-fixing and Amazon deforestation.
“Listing on the (New York Stock Exchange) is meant to be a signal to investors that a company is serious about transparency, but JBS has shown its only playbook is hiding the true scale of its destruction, climate emissions and human rights abuses,” environmental group MightyEarth said.
In January 2024, a group of 15 senators sent a letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission, asking the agency to reject a U.S. listing for the company. “We urge the SEC to consider how JBS’s improper access to U.S. capital markets might strengthen its market position, enhance its ability to engage in anticompetitive conduct, and adversely impact U.S. farmers and ranchers,” the lawmakers wrote.
JBS plans to finalize the registration of JBS N.V. in the Netherlands, which was expected to complete its foreign issuer registration with the Securities and Exchange Commission of Brazil on May 30. June 6 will mark the last day of trading for JBS S.A. shares on B3, and three days later, JBS N.V. Brazilian Depositary Receipts will begin trading on B3. The JBS N.V. shares are then expected to begin trading on the New York Stock Exchange on June 12.
Settlement claims
Claims are now open in JBS’ $83.5 million settlement with the National Farmers Union, Ranchers-Cattlemen Action Legal Fund (R-CALF), USA and four individual ranchers. The settlement comes following a 2019 class action lawsuit that alleged anticompetitive conduct in the cattle market against JBS, Tyson, Cargill and National Beef. Litigation continues against the remaining three packers.
“We filed this case after witnessing the inexplicable collapse of fed cattle prices beginning in 2015,” said R-CALF USA CEO Bill Bullard. “Our case has been working its way through the court for six years now and we will continue in our effort to recover as much as we can for American cattlemen.”
Parties eligible to make claims in the settlement include those who:
• Sold fed cattle for slaughter to Tyson, JBS, Cargill and/or National Beef from June 1, 2015, to Feb. 29, 2020, other than pursuant to a cost-plus agreement and/or a profit-sharing agreement.
• Held a long position in live cattle futures traded on the CME prior to June 1, 2025, and subsequently liquidated the long position through an offsetting market transaction at any point prior to Nov. 1, 2016.
The deadline to submit claims is Sept. 15. Claims may be submitted at cattleantitrustsettlement.com. The website includes more details of the settlement and instructions on how to file claims. Any information submitted will be confidential and not made available publicly or to any defendant. For more information on the settlement, potential class members may contact the claims administrator at 1-844-435-8844 or info@cattleantitrustsettlement.com.
New union contract
In other related news, on May 22, the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) International Union announced a contract ratification for JBS meatpacking workers. The union said the contract will bring significant wage increases, a new paid sick leave program and a pension retirement plan.
“Today’s contract ratification means better wages, safer working conditions, and a more stable future for workers in this industry,” said Mark Lauritsen of UFCW International. “A new standard has just been set in meatpacking.”
The contract will cover 26,000 workers at JBS regional beef, fed beef and pork processing facilities across the country represented by UFCW local unions. — Anna Miller, WLJ managing editor
