Forrest takes $15m bite of Bega Cheese

Tattarang has lifted its stake in Bega Cheese to 11.5 per cent.

Bega Cheese informed the ASX on Friday that Nicola and Andrew Forrest's investment outfit had purchased 4.5 million shares valued at $14.8 million between April and July.

That raises Tattarang's voting power by 1.5 per cent and the total value of its stake to about $118 million.

News of the investment comes as Tattarang has upped his stake in a variety of Australian businesses, including Henderson-based shipbuidler Austal, in which it now holds a 13.7 per cent stake after purchasing 22.5 million shares valued at $41.1 million between May and June.

The Forrest's investment vehicle ranks as Western Australia's third-largest private company, behind Gina Rinehart's Hancock Prospecting and Roy Hill Holdings, with revenue tallying $5 billion in the most recent financial year.

Most of its wealth owes to royalty payments flowing through from its shareholding in Fortescue Metals Group.

Its recent transactions include the sale of its stake in Roe Highway Logistics Park, believed to be worth $300 million, earlier this month.

Prior to that, the outfit in June committed to spend $35 million building a six-storey hotel at the site of the former Spicers Building in Fremantle.

Shares in Bega were trading at $3.50 at 3pm AEST.