Finsbury Food Group,the UK baker,has sold shares in the company to raise funds to invest in its cake business.
The company,which makes own-label cakes,as well as branded products under licence,said today(14 November)it had raised GBP3.9m before costs after selling 10.4m shares at a 38p each.CEO John Duffy and CFO Stephen Boyd bought some of the shares.
"The net proceeds from the placing will be used to fund capital investment projects within the company's UK cake business,"Finsbury said.
Finsbury,which counts Nestle and Thorntons among its partners,said it wants to develop its product portfolio through"proven technologies and automation"and improve efficiency.
In a trading update published alongside news of the share placement,Finsbury reported a"small decline"in its cake sales in the first three months of its new financial year.
Finsbury said it had seen lower cake sales in export markets but it reported"continued strong sales growth"from bread and free-from products.
"A stronger operational performance,including previous pricing and efficiency improvements,result in trading being in line with expectations for the year,"it said.
