(Alliance News) - Oasis Management Co has built up a stake in Greencore Group PLC, the Financial Times reported on Friday.
The Hong Kong-based activist investor owns just under 5% in the Dublin-based maker of package sandwiches and other convenience food, the newspaper said, citing two people familiar with the matter.
That puts Oasis among the top 10 shareholders of Greencore but below the mandatory disclosure threshold, the FT noted.
The investor has been unsatisfied with Oasis not paying dividends since 2020 despite having lower debt level compared to rivals such as competitors Premier Foods PLC and Bakkavor Group PLC, who are part of the FTSE 250, the FT reported.
https://www.ft.com/content/426077c6-2785-4da2-963a-59dd4f360380
In November, Greencore reported pretax profit of GBP45.2 million in the financial year that ended September 29, up 14% from GBP39.8 million a year prior. Revenue climbed 10% to GBP1.91 billion from GBP1.74 billion.
While it did not declare a dividend, it noted that it had returned GBP30.1 million to shareholders in the recent financial year by means of share buybacks.
Greencore completed a GBP15 million share buyback programme in February that had started in October last year.
Notably, Oasis last year became the largest shareholder in Restaurant Group, before the Wagamama-owner agreed to a GBP506 million sale to private equity firm Apollo Global Management Inc.
Greencore shares were up 2.0% to 109.00 pence each on Friday afternoon in London.
By Tom Budszus, Alliance News slot editor
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Greencore (GNC)
Premier Foods (PFD)
Bakkavor (BAKK)