PDMR Dealings

Finsbury Food Group PLC

16 November 2023

 

Date:	16 November 2023
On behalf of:	Finsbury Food Group Plc ('Finsbury', 'the Company' or 'the Group')
Embargoed until:	0700hrs

Finsbury Food Group plc

PDMR Dealings

Finsbury Food Group Plc (AIM: FIF), a leading UK specialty bakery and manufacturer of cake, bread and morning goods for both the retail and foodservice channels, announces that, on 15 November 2023, John Duffy, Chief Executive Officer, and Stephen Boyd, Group Finance Director, received ordinary shares of 1p each in the Company ("Ordinary Shares") pursuant to the Company's annual bonus arrangements in relation to the financial years ended 27 June 2015, 29 June 2019 and 27 June 2020.  On a gross settled basis, Mr Duffy received 2,040,377 Ordinary Shares and Mr Boyd received 1,437,101 Ordinary Shares.

Following receipt of the shares, Mr Duffy and his immediate family, have an interest in 4,910,575 Ordinary Shares representing approximately 3.77 per cent. of the Company's total issued share capital and Mr Boyd and his immediate family, have an interest in 2,809,588 Ordinary Shares representing approximately 2.15 per cent. of the Company's total issued share capital.

In parallel, in connection with the Acquisition of Finsbury by Frisbee Bidco Limited ("Bidco"), all other participants in the Finsbury Share Plans either exercised some or all of their options and received Ordinary Shares or elected to surrender some or all of their options in favour of the grant of a new award over shares in Bidco (or a combination of both) in accordance with the proposals made by Finsbury and Bidco to them in letters dated 2 October 2023 in accordance with the Rule 15 Proposals.

The Ordinary Shares were transferred from the trustee of the Finsbury Food Group Plc Employee Benefit Trust ("EBT"). Following such transfers, the trustee of the EBT is interested in 1,085,693 Ordinary Shares, representing 0.83 per cent. of the Company's total issued share capital.

The EBT is a discretionary trust for the benefit of employees of the Company and its subsidiaries. The Executive Directors of the Company are included in the class of potential beneficiaries of the EBT and are deemed to be interested in those shares and the dealings thereof.

1	Details of the person discharging managerial responsibilities/person closely associated
a)	Name:	John Duffy
2	Reason for the notification
a)	Position/Status:	Chief Executive Officer
b)	Initial Notification/Amendment:	Initial Notification
3	Details of the issuer, emission allowance market participation, auction platform, auctioneer or auction monitor
a)	Name:	Finsbury Food Group Plc
b)	LEI:	213800NP5Y3DYJM1MF44
4.	Details of transaction(s); section to be repeated for (i) each type of instrument; (ii) each type of transaction; (iii) each date; and (iv) each place where transactions have been conducted.
a)	Description of the financial instrument: Identification code:	Ordinary Shares of 1 pence each ISIN: GB0009186429
b)	Nature of the transaction:	Transfer of Ordinary Shares from the Finsbury Food Group Employee Benefit Trust pursuant to the Finsbury Share Plans, in accordance with the Acquisition by Frisbee Bidco Limited
c)	Price(s) and volume(s):	Price Volume Nil cost 2,040,377
d)	Aggregated volume: Price:	N/A
e)	Date of the Transaction:	15 November 2023
f)	Place of the Transaction:	Outside a trading venue

1	Details of the person discharging managerial responsibilities/person closely associated
a)	Name:	Stephen Boyd
2	Reason for the notification
a)	Position/Status:	Group Finance Director
b)	Initial Notification/Amendment:	Initial Notification
3	Details of the issuer, emission allowance market participation, auction platform, auctioneer or auction monitor
a)	Name:	Finsbury Food Group Plc
b)	LEI:	213800NP5Y3DYJM1MF44
4.	Details of transaction(s); section to be repeated for (i) each type of instrument; (ii) each type of transaction; (iii) each date; and (iv) each place where transactions have been conducted.
a)	Description of the financial instrument: Identification code:	Ordinary Shares of 1 pence each ISIN: GB0009186429
b)	Nature of the transaction:	Transfer of Ordinary Shares from the Finsbury Food Group Employee Benefit Trust pursuant to the Finsbury Share Plans, in accordance with the Acquisition by Frisbee Bidco Limited
c)	Price(s) and volume(s):	Price Volume Nil cost 1,437,101
d)	Aggregated volume: Price:	N/A
e)	Date of the Transaction:	15 November 2023
f)	Place of the Transaction:	Outside a trading venue

For further information:

Finsbury Food Group                       John Duffy (Chief Executive) Steve Boyd (Finance Director)	www.finsburyfoods.co.uk	029 20 357 500
Panmure Gordon (UK) Limited Dominic Morley Atholl Tweedie Rupert Dearden		020 7886 2500
Alma PR                                          Sam Modlin Rebecca Sanders-Hewett Matthew Young	[e-mail]	020 3405 0205

Notes to Editors:

·      Finsbury Food Group Plc (AIM: FIF) is a leading UK manufacturer of cake and bread bakery goods, supplying a broad range of blue-chip customers within both the grocery retail and 'out of home eating' foodservice sectors including major multiples and leading foodservice providers.

·      The Company is one of the largest speciality bakery groups in the UK and, with its Overseas division, had sales in the financial year ended 1 July 2023 exceeding £413 million.

·      The Company's bakery product range is comprehensive and includes:

o  Large premium and celebration cakes.

o  Small snacking cake formats such as cake slices and bites.

o  Artisan, healthy lifestyle and organic breads through to rolls, muffins (sweet and savoury) and morning pastries, all of which are available both fresh and frozen dependent on customer channel requirements.

o  Gluten-free bread, morning goods and cake ranges.

·      The Company is one of the largest ambient cake manufacturers in the UK, a market valued at £1.4 billion (source: Kantar Worldpanel 52 w/e 06 August 2023). The retail bread and morning goods market has a value of £6.3 billion (source: Kantar Worldpanel 52 w/e 03 September 2023). The retail Free From cake market is valued at £69.6 million (source: Kantar Worldpanel 52 w/e 06 August 2023). The retail Free From bread and morning goods market is valued at £186.4 million (source: Kantar Worldpanel 52 w/e 03 September 2023).

·      The Company comprises a core UK Bakery division and an Overseas division:

o  The UK Bakery division has manufacturing sites in Cardiff, East Kilbride, Hamilton, Salisbury, Sheffield, Manchester, Pontypool and now Coatbridge.

o  The Overseas division comprises the Company's 85% owned company, Lightbody-Stretz Limited, which supplies and distributes the Group's UK-manufactured products and third-party products, in Europe, and the Company's manufacturing facilities in Rybarzowice and Żywiec in Poland.

 

END