MEXICO CITY – Shareholders of Grupo Bimbo S.A.B. de C.V. approved a series of resolutions Sept. 18 at a general extraordinary meeting of shareholders, setting in motion a public offering of Grupo Bimbo shares.

The secondary offering will encompass as many as 231,437,500 series A shares of Bimbo common stock, including 201,250,000 shares representing the fixed portion of the company’s capital stock plus up to 30,187,500 as an overallotment for underwriters.

Based on a closing price Sept. 18 of 39.80 pesos ($3), the offering, with the overallotment, would raise about 9.2 billion pesos ($694 million).

The resolutions authorized Bimbo to sell the shares in Mexico, the United States and other foreign markets at a value to be determined based on prevailing market conditions at the moment the offering takes place and other relevant factors. The percentage of the offering to be placed in Mexico and the percentage in the Global Offer remained to be determined.

The 231 million shares to be sold equate to about 5% of the 4,703,200,000 shares outstanding as detailed in the company’s 2013 annual report.