Completion of the sale of Costa to Coca-Cola

RNS Number : 1414M

Whitbread PLC

03 January 2019

 

3rd January 2019 

Completion of the sale of Costa to Coca-Cola

Whitbread PLC ("Whitbread") is pleased to announce that it has completed the sale of Costa Limited to The Coca-Cola Company. The sale proceeds of £3.9 billion have been received in cash.

As previously announced on 21 December 2018, Whitbread intends to start a share buyback programme, which is likely to commence following release of Whitbread's third quarter trading update on 17 January 2019.

Whitbread has also reached an agreement with the Trustee of Whitbread's defined benefit pension scheme, the Whitbread Group Pension Fund (the "Pension Fund"). The agreement will release Costa from its obligations to the Pension Fund and will involve a one-off contribution to the Pension Fund of up to £380 million, which will significantly de-risk the Pension Fund's investment strategy. This one-off contribution will replace the previously agreed deficit recovery plan, which would have required Whitbread to make total payments of £326 million to the Pension Fund over the next four years. 

This announcement contains inside information.

For more information please contact:

Investor queries

Matt Johnson, Whitbread PLC | [e-mail] ss="aw">[e-mail] "> | [phone]

David Allchurch / Jessica Reid, Tulchan Communications c;">For photographs and video please visit Whitbread's media library at www.whitbread.co.uk/media.

Important information relating to financial advisers

Goldman Sachs International ("Goldman Sachs") and Morgan Stanley & Co. International plc ("Morgan Stanley") are acting as joint financial advisers and joint sponsors to Whitbread. Deutsche Bank AG, acting through its London branch ("Deutsche Bank") is acting as financial adviser to Whitbread. Morgan Stanley and Deutsche Bank are acting as corporate brokers to Whitbread. Slaughter and May is acting as legal adviser to Whitbread.

Goldman Sachs, which is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority in the United Kingdom, is acting exclusively as sponsor and financial adviser to Whitbread and for no one else in connection with the matters referred to in this announcement and will not be responsible to anyone other than Whitbread for providing the protections afforded to clients of Goldman Sachs or for providing advice in relation to the matters referred to in this announcement.

Morgan Stanley, which is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority in the United Kingdom, is acting exclusively as sponsor, financial adviser and corporate broker to Whitbread and for no one else in connection with the matters referred to in this announcement and will not be responsible to anyone other than Whitbread for providing the protections afforded to clients of Morgan Stanley or for providing advice in relation to the matters referred to in this announcement.

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