Europastry plans to take the Spain-based frozen bakery business public, with a view to funding further international expansion and acquisitions.
The €1.35bn ($1.45bn) turnover company is applying for a listing on the Barcelona, Madrid, Bilbao and Valencia stock exchanges. The initial public offering (IPO) will consist of a primary new issue of shares amounting to around €225m.
A second tranche will also be made by investment firms connected with Europastry’s Gallés family shareholders, namely Exponent, which is owned by the MCH Continuation Fund under the umbrella of MCH Private Equity, based in Madrid.
Indinura, owned by Europastry CEO Jordi Morral, is also part of the secondary contingent, whereby the family will remain controlling shareholders post-IPO. In compliance with listing regulations, the free-float of shares will be “at least” 25%, the company said in a statement.
Jordi Gallés, majority shareholder and executive vice president, said: “Europastry is at the next stage of its development and this IPO is the natural way to fund and accelerate our growth strategy to foster our leadership position in the frozen bakery segment, while deleveraging and maintaining a prudent capital structure.”
He added: “Through international expansion, continued product innovations and a value-accretive acquisitions strategy we want to cement our position as a leader in the global frozen bakery market and promote sustainability in the sector.”
Founded in 1987 and headquartered in Barcelona, Europastry has been active in M&A, giving the company 27 production facilities supplying more than 80 different markets.
In 2022, the company bought the frozen bakery business of US-based Dawn Foods and in 2019 invested in Spanish pizza business Casa Bona. The same year it took full ownership of foodservice bakery supplier Ingapan and in 2018 acquired Portuguese business Confeitaria Torres.
Retail accounted for 56% of Europastry’s €1.35bn turnover last year, while the out-of-home channel made up 32% and B2B customers the remainder.
JPMorgan, UBS and ING are acting as joint international bookrunners for the IPO, while the local managers include Santander, CaixaBank, Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria and Rabobank.
Europastry first touted a plan for the IPO back in 2007 but the offering never materialised.
With a portfolio taking in bread, pizza, pies, pastries and sandwiches, turnover grew 20% in 2023 for the owner of brands such as Dots, Sophie and Panburger.
The company generated adjusted EBITDA of €205m and a margin of 15.2% versus 13.8% the prior year, according to the IPO statement.
Organic growth averaged 8.5% from 2014 to 2023, with acquisitions helping to drive a CAGR in turnover of 14.5% over the same timeframe,
