Launch of Second Share Buyback Programme

RNS Number : 8485H

Greencore Group PLC

29 November 2022

 

29 November 2022

Greencore Group plc

Launch of Second Share Buyback Programme

On 24 May 2022, Greencore Group plc ("Greencore" or the "Group"), a leading manufacturer of convenience foods in the UK, announced its intention to commence a share buyback programme during the course of 2022.

Following the completion of its £10 million share buyback programme between 26 July 2022 and 6 October 2022, the Company today announces that it has entered into non-discretionary arrangements with Shore Capital Stockbrokers Limited (acting as principal) to conduct a further share buyback programme and to buy back ordinary shares (the "Shares") for a maximum aggregate consideration of up to £15 million and to make trading decisions under the Programme independently of the Group in accordance with certain pre-set parameters (the "Buyback").

The Buyback will commence today 29 November 2022 and will end no later than 31 May 2023 subject to market conditions. Under the terms of the Programme, the Shares will be repurchased on the London Stock Exchange and will be cancelled.

The maximum number of Shares which can be repurchased under the Buyback is 41,259,416 Shares. The purpose of the Buyback is to reduce the share capital of the Company in line with this announcement.  It will be conducted at all times within the limits of the applicable authority granted by shareholders to repurchase the Company's ordinary shares in issue (the "Authority").

The Buyback will also be conducted within the parameters prescribed by the Market Abuse Regulation 596/2014 and the Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2016/1052 (also as in force in the UK, from time to time, including, where relevant, pursuant to the UK's European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 and the Market Abuse (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019) as well as the applicable laws and regulations of the UK Financial Conduct Authority.

The Programme may be augmented by the purchase of Shares by way of block trades in accordance with the Company's general authority to repurchase shares.

The Group will make further announcements in due course following any buy back of Shares. There is no guarantee that the Programme will be implemented in full or that any Shares will be bought back by the Group.

Commenting on the launch, Gary Kennedy, Non-Executive Chair, said:

"We are pleased to launch our second share buyback programme of 2022 today as part of our commitment to recommence value return to shareholders. As previously announced, we plan to return up to £50m over the next two years, initially in the form of this buyback programme and with the ongoing flexibility to return value in the form of buyback, dividends or both. This is underpinned by our strong balance sheet and continued optimism around our business prospects".

For further information, please contact:

Gary Kennedy	Non-Executive Chair	Tel: [phone]
Emma Hynes	Chief Financial Officer	Tel: [phone]
Damien Moynagh	General Counsel and Group Company Secretary	Tel: [phone]
Rob Greening/ Nick Hayns/ Sam Austrums	Powerscourt	Tel: [phone]
Billy Murphy/ Claire Rowley/ Cian Doherty	Drury Communications	Tel: [phone]

About Greencore

We are a leading manufacturer of convenience food in the UK and our purpose is to make every day taste better. To help us achieve this we have a model called The Greencore Way, which is built on the differentiators of People at the Core, Great Food, Excellence and Sustainability - The Greencore Way describes both who we are and how we will succeed.

We supply all of the major supermarkets in the UK. We also supply convenience and travel retail outlets, discounters, coffee shops, foodservice and other retailers. We have strong market positions in a range of categories including sandwiches, salads, sushi, chilled snacking, chilled ready meals, chilled soups and sauces, chilled quiche, ambient sauces and pickles, and frozen Yorkshire Puddings.

In FY22 we manufactured 795m sandwiches and other food to go products, 127m chilled prepared meals, and 249m bottles of cooking sauces, pickles and condiments. We carry out more than 10,600 direct to store deliveries each day. We have 16 world-class manufacturing sites and 18 distribution centres in the UK, with industry-leading technology and supply chain capabilities. We generated revenues of £1.7bn in FY22 and employ more than 14,000 people. We are headquartered in Dublin, Ireland.

For further information go to www.greencore.com or follow Greencore on social media.

 

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