Ireland-based company Total Produce has announced that it will maintain its target of continued growth for 2018 on a like-for-like basis, excluding the impact of its acquisition of a 45% stake in Dole Food Company.
On 1 February, the fresh produce group entered into a $300 million agreement with the American company. Sixty-three million new ordinary shares were issued in order to raise $180 million to fund the Dole transaction.
The group's full-year growth expectations won't be altered by the transaction, Total Produce said in a statement, but cautioned that H1 growth will be 'limited' as a result of uncommon weather and currency movements within the financial period.
'Strong financial position'
The deal is subject to regulatory approval, but is expected to be completed in the latter half of this year.
The 2019 financial year will be the first full-year that will illustrate the scale of the deal.
A final dividend of 0.024525 per share will be doled out on 1 June, dependent on shareholder approval. It amounts to a 10% increase on last year's dividend.
'Total Produce is in a strong financial position and the Dole transaction represents a very
significant step and a continuation of the Group’s successful expansion strategy,' the company said in the statement.
Strong Performance
The company announced its full-year 2017 results in March, saying it delivered a 'strong performance', with revenue rising 13.9% to €4.29 billion.
Adjusted EBITDA was up 10.1% to €104.4 million, and profit before tax grew by 43.2% to €72.5 million.
The company said that its results benefitted from the contribution of acquisitions completed during the year, offset in part by currency movements.
© 2018 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Karen Henderson. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
