Greencore operating profits slide but firm is upbeat after Uniq acquisition
IRISH food group Greencore expects significant profit growth in 2012 helped by its Uniq acquisition and as cost price inflation eases, after it reported 2011 results in line with analyst expectations.
Greencore, one of the biggest sandwich and ready meal suppliers to Britain, said it still planned to play a role in the consolidation of the British convenience food sector despite the failure of a takeover approach announced on Monday.
Operating profit will see “significant improvement” next year despite challenging marked conditions in the US and UK due to the impact of the acquisition of rival Uniq in July, said chief executive Patrick Coveney.
Greencore bought British rival Uniq for about £113m.
Yesterday it reported an operating profit of £51.5m, down from £51.6m last year but above analyst forecasts of £50.8m. Revenues of £804m were up 4.3 per cent on a like-for-like basis.