AB Foods considers separating Primark and food business

British conglomerate AB Foods is considering separating its textile discounter Primark and its food business as part of a corporate restructuring.

“Within ABF, the company has two great business divisions,” said chief executive George Weston, the grandson of the company's founder, at the presentation of annual figures on Tuesday. He noted that the food business has an “extremely attractive portfolio, even if it is less well understood by the financial markets than Primark.”

Chairman Michael McLintock added that part of the decision is related to the size of Primark, which accounts for the majority of the conglomerate's operating profit. The largest shareholder, Wittington Investments – the investment company of the wealthy Weston family – intends to maintain a majority stake in both business segments, according to the company.

Meanwhile, the company earned significantly less in the past financial year. The company was particularly affected by the low price of sugar. Turnover for the full year to September 13 shrank by 3 percent year-over-year to just under 19.46 billion British pounds.

Adjusted operating profit fell by 13 percent to 1.73 billion British pounds. Analysts had expected a sharper decline. For the current year, the company expects an increase in earnings. The bottom line for the full year was a profit for shareholders of just over one billion pounds. This was almost 30 percent less than in the previous year.

This article was translated to English using an AI tool.

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