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Associated British Foods PLC

Associated British Foods plc engages in the food, ingredients, and retail businesses worldwide. It operates through five segments: Retail, Grocery, Ingredients, Sugar, and Agriculture. The Retail segment is involved in buying and merchandising clothing and accessories through the Primark and Penneys retail chains, which offer women's, men's, and kidswear, as well as beauty, homeware, and accessories. The Grocery segment manufactures grocery products, including hot beverages, sugar, vegetable oils, balsamic vinegars, bread and baked goods, cereals, ethnic food and meat products to retail, wholesale, and foodservice businesses. The Ingredients segment manufactures yeast and bakery ingredients, specialty ingredients focused on enzymes, procession extracts, health and nutrition, and pharmaceutical delivery systems. The Sugar segment is involved in growing and processing sugar beet and sugar cane. The Agriculture segment manufactures specialty feed ingredients, premix, and compound animal feed; and other products and services for the agriculture sector. The company was incorporated in 1934 and is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom. Associated British Foods plc operates as a subsidiary of Wittington Investments Limited.

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European Shares Modestly Higher In Cautious Trade

European stocks eked out modest gains in cautious trade on Tuesday as investors reacted to mixed earnings updates and awaited interest-rate decisions from the Bank of England and the Federal Reserve later this week. The pan European STOXX 600 was up 0.2 percent at 510.33, while the German DAX, France's CAC 40 and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 all rose around 0.3 percent. Vestas plummeted 11 percent after lowering its EBIT projection for the Service segment to EUR 450 million from EUR 500 million, and Schroders fell almost 12 percent after reporting £2.3 billion of quarterly outflows. Associated British Foods rallied 2.7 percent on strong annual results, and Swiss Re gained 1.1 percent after agreeing to sell its European P&C business to Allianz Direct.
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ABF renames UK bread arm to Hovis Bakeries after completing Hovis acquisition

Associated British Foods has rebranded its UK bread division as Hovis Bakeries after completing the acquisition of Hovis Group. The deal merges Hovis with Allied Bakeries, the Kingsmill owner, to create what ABF calls a sustainably profitable UK bakeries business with an enhanced market position. The UK's Competition and Markets Authority cleared the transaction in June, noting that without it ABF would likely have exited the UK bakery sector. ABF expects the purchase to be marginally dilutive to earnings in its 2027 financial year before becoming accretive thereafter, with substantial operational synergies anticipated across manufacturing and distribution.
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Sugar woes sour ABF shares

Shares in Associated British Foods fell 3.82% to 1,910 pence after the company warned that the Middle East conflict has pushed up costs for its sugar business, which will dent profits in Europe. ABF said sales from its sugar arm declined 4% in the 16 weeks to 20 June, citing reduced selling prices in Europe and higher imports in South Africa. The company noted that gas costs have risen significantly due to the conflict, and if these dynamics persist, it expects to recognise onerous contracts in the 2026 financial year. ABF maintained its full-year outlook for the rest of the group, which includes grocery brands like Twinings and Patak's, and is proceeding with a planned demerger of its food businesses from Primark by the end of 2027.
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Primark owner ABF warns of profit drop as gas costs hit sugar arm

Associated British Foods expects a drop in profits this year and warned that higher gas prices will further deteriorate profits in its sugar arm next year. The group, which is preparing to spin off Primark by the end of next year, reported a 3% rise in group revenues to £5.3 billion for the quarter to June 20, with Primark sales up 4% to £2.92 billion. However, like-for-like sales at Primark dipped 2.2%, and sugar revenues fell 4% due to lower European selling prices. Chief executive George Weston said the Middle East conflict has increased gas price expectations, impacting the European profit outlook for sugar, while the full-year outlook for the rest of the group remains unchanged.
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