Share Buyback Programme of up to £500,000,000

RNS Number : 8329F

M&G PLC

24 March 2022

 

M&G Plc NEWS RELEASE

24 March 2022

M&G plc

SHARE BUYBACK PROGRAMME OF UP TO £500,000,000

M&G plc (the "Company") announces that, as outlined in its announcement on 8 March 2022, it will commence a share buyback programme to purchase ordinary shares of 5 pence each in the Company ("Ordinary Shares") for up to a maximum consideration of £500,000,000 (the "Buyback").

The Company has entered into an irrevocable agreement with Goldman Sachs International ("Goldman Sachs") in relation to the purchase by Goldman Sachs, acting as principal, of Ordinary Shares. Under this agreement, the Company has instructed Goldman Sachs International to purchase shares up to a maximum consideration of £500,000,000 pursuant to the Buyback.

The purpose of the Buyback is to reduce the share capital of the Company. The Directors consider the Buyback to be in the best interests of the Company and of its shareholders generally, and it is expected that the implementation of the Buyback will enhance earnings per share.

Purchases of the Company's Ordinary Shares pursuant to the Buyback will commence immediately and will end no later than 23 March 2023.

Ordinary Shares acquired by Goldman Sachs will be simultaneously on-sold by Goldman Sachs to the Company.  The majority of the Ordinary Shares purchased under the Buyback will be cancelled. The remaining Ordinary Shares will be held in Treasury and then transferred to the Company's Employee Benefit Trust to satisfy obligations arising from awards and options granted to employees under the Company's employee share plans. 

Goldman Sachs will make trading decisions in relation to the Buyback independently of, and uninfluenced by, the Company with regard to the timing of the purchases. Any purchase of Ordinary Shares by Goldman Sachs contemplated by this announcement will be carried out on the London Stock Exchange and/or Cboe Europe Limited through the BXE and CXE order books and/or on Turquoise Equities Trading.

Any purchases of Ordinary Shares by the Company from Goldman Sachs under the Buyback will be carried out on the London Stock Exchange in accordance with certain pre-set parameters set out in the agreement between the Company and Goldman Sachs.

Any purchases under the Buyback shall also take place in accordance with (and subject to the limits prescribed by) the Company's general authority to repurchase Ordinary Shares granted by its shareholders at the annual general meeting on 26 May 2021 (the "2021 Authority") and any subsequent authority, Chapter 12 of the Financial Conduct Authority's Listing Rules, the Market Abuse Regulation (EU) No 596/2014 (as in force in the UK and as amended by the Market Abuse (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019),  the Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 2016/1052 (as in force in the UK and as amended by the FCA's Technical Standards (Market Abuse Regulation) (EU Exit) Instrument 2019). The Buyback will be discontinued in the event the Company ceases to have the necessary general authority to repurchase Ordinary Shares. The details of the 2021 Authority can be found here https://www.mandgplc.com/~/media/Files/M/MandG-Plc/documents/investors/AGM/2021/Notice-of-Annual-General-Meeting-2021.pdf .

The maximum number of Ordinary Shares that the Company is authorised to purchase under the 2021 Authority is 259,990,600.

The Company will make further regulatory announcements to shareholders in respect of purchases of Ordinary Shares under the Buyback as they occur.

-Ends-

Enquiries:

Media		Investors/Analysts
Richard Miles	[phone]	Luca Gagliardi	[phone]
Jonathan Miller	[phone]

About M&G plc

M&G plc is an international savings and investments business, managing money for both individual savers and institutional investors in 28 markets. As at 30 June 2021, we had £370 billion of assets under management and administration, around 5 million retail customers and more than 800 institutional clients.

With a heritage dating back more than 170 years, M&G plc has a long history of innovation in savings and investments, combining asset management and insurance expertise to offer a wide range of solutions. We serve our savings and insurance customers under the Prudential brand in the UK and Europe, and under the M&G Investments brand for asset management clients globally.

Disclosures

LEI: 254900TWUJUQ44TQJY84

Classification: 2.4 Acquisition or disposal of the issuer's own shares

 

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