LONDON—Nomad Foods Ltd. on Thursday confirmed it is buying the
continental European operations of frozen-food maker Findus Group
for £ 500 million ($780.7 million) in cash and shares.
Nomad, founded by entrepreneurs Martin E. Franklin and Noam
Gottesman, said it had entered into an option agreement to buy
Findus Sverige AB and its subsidiaries from the company's backers,
which including Highbridge Principal Strategies, Lion Capital LLP
and Sankaty Advisors.
The deal includes Findus businesses in Sweden, Norway, Finland,
Denmark, France, Spain and Belgium. These operations include the
intellectual property and commercialization rights to the Findus,
Lutosa, and La Cocinera brands in the respective markets.
The remaining part of Findus, including Young's Seafood Limited
in the U.K., will remain under the ownership of the seller, Nomad
said.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday that Nomad was
close to a deal, citing people familiar with the matter.
Mr. Franklin said the deal would allow Nomad to grow its frozen
foods business, while simultaneously pursuing other acquisitions,
both in Europe and the U.S. "There are places in frozen food where
we think we can find growth," he said.
"At the same time, we are keeping our eye on opportunities in
the U.S.," Mr. Franklin added.
UBS Investment Bank and Credit Suisse acted as financial
advisers and Greenberg Traurig acted as legal adviser to Nomad on
the transaction. To finance the deal, Nomad intends to use its
existing cash and seek further debt funding from UBS, Credit Suisse
and Barclays.
Centerview Partners acted as exclusive financial adviser and
Latham & Watkins acted as legal advisers to the seller.
Write to Ian Walker at ian.walker@wsj.com and Shayndi Raice at
shayndi.raice@wsj.com
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