Bumper pay day for Britvic boss ahead of £3.3bn Carlsberg deal
The chief executive of Robinsons squash maker Britvic has received a bumper pay day ahead of the group’s £3.3bn takeover by Carlsberg.
Simon Litherland has been handed a £4.68m pay packet, up from the £2.86m he received in the prior year and £1.93m in the 12 months before that.
The total is the highest Litherland has received since he took over as CEO in 2014. The previous record was the £3.74m he was paid in 2019.
The pay award, which has been revealed in Britvic’s annual report, comes after the company accepted a £3.3bn takeover offer from Danish drinks giant Carlsberg in July.
When the deal was announced, Carlsberg said it would pay a total of 1,315p per Britvic share, a premium of around 36 per cent on its closing price on 19 June, the day prior to reports emerged about a possible takeover.
At the time, directors at Britvic said the offer was “fair and reasonable,” and they recommended unanimously that shareholders vote in favour of the scheme.
As well as owning Robinsons and Fruit Shoot, Britvic also has a contract to distribute Pepsico’s brands like Pepsi and 7UP in the UK. Pepsico gave the merger its blessing at the end of June.
The deal with Carlsberg is expected to complete during the first quarter of 2025.
In November, Britvic announced that its revenue increased by 9.5 per cent to £1.89bn in the year to 30 September, 2024.
Britvic added that its profit after tax increased 1.8 per cent to £125.8m, while adjusted earnings per share reached 69.5p, an increase of 13.9 per cent.
Writing in the annual report, remuneration chair Georgina Harvey said: “In the context of the pending approvals by the competition authorities and the court sanction of the scheme of arrangement, the committee carefully considered the decisions made on executive remuneration and believes that the 2024 outcomes are a fair reflection of company and individual performance and align with the broader stakeholder experience.
“Simon Litherland, his senior leadership team and all our employees have once again to be commended for their commitment and contribution in 2024 during what has been a historic year for Britvic.”