Swiss-based chocolate company Lindt & Sprüngli has announced plans to execute a CHF 500 million (€430 million) share buyback programme.
The company says that the buyback is based on the high liquidity and solid balance sheet of Lindt & Sprüngli, with the aim of reducing capital.
Repurchases are expected to start on 12 March 2018, and last until 31 July 2019.
Business Outlook
The announcement of the new programme comes on the same day the company confirmed that sales increased by 4.8% to CHF 4 billion last year.
Lindt & Sprüngli's Europe business saw organic sales growth of 6.2% in 2017, performing particularly well in Germany and the UK, however, sales in the NAFTA region fell by 1.6%.
Looking ahead, Lindt said it expects organic sales to grow by around 5% this year, below the chocolate-maker’s long-term target, given continued challenges in the US retail market.
© 2018 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Sarah Harford. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
