(Bloomberg) -- Rainbow Chicken Ltd., a poultry firm backed by South African billionaire Johann Rupert, rose on its debut on the Johannesburg stock exchange Wednesday, valuing the company at about $178 million.

RCL Foods Ltd., controlled by Rupert’s Remgro Ltd., unbundled its chicken business. Rainbow’s 890.3 million shares closed at 3.65 rand on its first day of trade, to value the firm at some 3.2 billion rand ($178 million) on Wednesday. 

“The intent is to have a purely agri-business, that will or should extract better value,” Rainbow Chicken Chief Executive Officer Marthinus Stander said in an interview. 

The listing — the third for Africa’s biggest bourse this year — shows nascent signs of investor interest in an economy that’s stagnated for years. The JSE lured just three companies in the past five years before Transaction Capital Ltd.’s used-car business, WeBuyCars, sold shares in an initial public offering in April. Companies are re-looking at their listing plans after the May 29 election led to optimism that a government of national unity will focus on reviving the moribund economy.

“We are on a good sentiment now post-election and the markets are indicating so,” said JSE Ltd. Director of Capital Markets Valdene Reddy. “It’s real buoyant markets in both our equities and debt markets.”

Cilo Cybin Holdings Ltd., a South African medical cannabis company, listed on the JSE’s AltX platform for small and medium enterprises earlier this week. 

Rainbow Chicken recapitalized with a convertible loan, and an additional 300 million rand from shareholders, and has managed to lower its costs, add new chicken breeds, and is investing in additional equipment to boost volumes, Stander said. 

“There are also additional tailwinds in the industry, with a good rand, dollar exchange, and positivity around the government of national unity,” he said. 

--With assistance from Mpho Hlakudi.

(Corrects number of shares and market value in the lead and second paragraph in story published on June 26.)

©2024 Bloomberg L.P.