Alico, Inc. has now modified its fixed rate term loans with Metropolitan Life Insurance Company and New England Life Insurance Company (collectively “Metlife”). The interest rate on these loans has been reduced and quarterly principal payments will no longer be required. As of May 1, 2021, this long-term debt will be interest-bearing only, and the principal balance will be fixed until maturity in November 2029, when a balloon payment will be due, or the balance is refinanced. As of May 1, 2021, the annual interest rate on this debt was reduced from 4.15% to 3.85%. In April 2021, Alico prepaid without penalty approximately $10.3 million to reduce the principal of this fixed rate debt to $70 million, using net proceeds from an asset sale announced in the same month. These modifications are expected to reduce debt service to between $5 million and $6 million per year. Nominal fees and no penalties were incurred to modify these loans. In addition, Alico retains the option to prepay approximately $40 million of variable rate term loans with Metlife without penalty. If net proceeds from future asset sales are used to prepay the entire amount of that variable rate term debt, Alico would be expected to decrease its debt service by another $3 million to $3.5 million annually. If such a repayment was made in fiscal 2022, Alico would require only approximately $5.1 million to service its remaining $88.2 million of debt, which is a substantial decrease from approximately $21.2 million used for debt service in fiscal 2020, which included approximately $4.5 million that the Company opportunistically prepaid.
Alico, Inc. is an agribusiness and land management company. The Company is engaged in the sale of its citrus products, providing services to citrus groves owned by third parties, and grazing and hunting leasing. Its segments include Alico Citrus and Land Management and Other Operations. Alico Citrus segment is engaged in planting, owning, cultivating and/or managing citrus groves to produce fruit for sale to fresh and processed citrus markets, including activities related to the purchase and resale of fruit and value-added services, which include contracting for the harvesting, marketing and hauling of citrus. Its Land Management and Other Operations segment includes activities related to native plant sales, grazing and hunting leasing, management and/or conservation of unimproved native pastureland and activities related to rock mining royalties and other insignificant lines of business. It owns over 73,000 acres of land and 90,000 acres of mineral rights throughout Florida.