Munich, September 27, 2016 – AURELIUS Equity Opportunities SE & Co. KGaA (ISIN DE000A0JK2A8) has now sold the last of its equity interest in the listed subsidiary Berentzen-Gruppe Aktiengesellschaft (ISIN: DE0005201602) following the successful reorientation of the company since the acquisition in 2008. In total, AURELIUS quadrupled its capital investment with its involvement in the Berentzen Group. The shares were sold to institutional and private Investors over the last few months in several steps, thereby establishing a new and stable shareholder base for Berentzen. For example, Berentzen attracted the Dutch investment company Monolith as a new anchor investor in April 2016 with a share of more than ten percent in the company.

The shares in the Berentzen Group were acquired by AURELIUS from more than 40 family members in 2008. Longstanding disputes between the family members had severely weakened the company and allowed it to slip into the red. Since then, the company has developed from an enterprise in need of capital reconstruction into a successful and broadly positioned beverage concern thanks to the consistent implementation of AURELIUS' classic operating approach. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) were increased to more than 15 million euros in fiscal year 2015 as a result of extensive reorientation measures. In addition to concentrating on the modern location in Minden for spirits production, costs were permanently decreased by a reduction in complexity, for example a considerable reduction in bottle sizes and shapes as well as the streamlining and optimization of the product portfolio.

In addition to the healthy cost basis, the Berentzen Group's current success can be attributed in particular to the consistent execution of various growth initiatives while it was a member of the AURELIUS Group. Alongside the national and international growth of the core brands Berentzen and Puschkin in the traditional Spirits segment, innovative products from the Non-alcoholic Beverages segment, where Berentzen is focusing on the megatrend of health consciousness with healthy and environmentally sustainable beverages, are boosting revenues and earnings. In the trend market for healthy, non-alcoholic lifestyle products, the system vendor for fresh orange juice CITROCASA was acquired at the end of 2014 and has shown continuous robust growth since then. The energy drink Mio Mio Mate, which was developed internally and produced on an herbal basis, was also successfully introduced to the market.

"Now that it is healthy and on sustainable footing, we are pleased to see the Berentzen Group to the door to a successful future. We would like to express our thanks for this mutual success in particular to the committed employees as well as to the two Executive Board members Frank Schübel and Ralf Brühöfner, who have contributed substantially to the Berentzen Group's most recent successful track record and will consistently continue the profitable growth strategy," says Gert Purkert, responsible in the Executive Board of AURELIUS for the reorientation of the Berentzen Group and Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Berentzen-Gruppe Aktiengesellschaft.