The company who manages KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell brands in Romania is now listed on Bucharest Stock Exchange

The shares of Sphera Franchise Group, one of the most important foodservice operators in Romania, started trading on Bucharest Stock Exchange (BVB), under SFG symbol.

2017-11-10 10:28:50

The company, which manages restaurants under the KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell brands, becomes the first listed foodservice operator on BVB.
"The listing of Sphera Franchise Group on Bucharest Stock Exchange is an important and memorable milestone for our business," said Mark Hilton, CEO of SFG. "We are pleased to join the roster of important companies trading on this exchange and proud that we are the first brand from the foodservice sector to list in Romania. Investors can now have exposure to some of the world's most iconic brands in KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell through Sphera Franchise Group. For Sphera, it is a new stage in its development and we have high ambitions, our plan being to exceed 240 restaurants by the end of 2022."
The final offer price for the 9.83 million shares issued by Sphera within the secondary initial public offer was set at 29 RON per share. At this price, the value of the offer exceeded 285 million RON (equivalent to 62 million Euro). Under the offer, 9.34 million shares, or 95 per cent of the total, were allotted to institutional investors and less than 0.5 million shares, equivalent to five per cent, to retail.
Intermediaries of the offer were Wood & Company as Sole Global Coordinator and Joint Bookrunner, while Raiffeisen Bank and Alpha Finance Romania acted as Joint Bookrunner and Co-Lead Manager respectively.
Sphera Franchise Group is the company that owns the right to manage restaurants under the KFC brand in Romania, Republic of Moldova and in some regions of Northern Italy, operates restaurants under the brand Pizza Hut and Taco Bell in Romania and owns the Pizza Hut Delivery service locally. The company recorded a turnover of 514.5 million RON last year, 26.8 per cent more than in 2015 and made a net profit of 51.6 million RON or 9.2 per cent more than the previous year.