Domino’s Pizza sells Norwegian arm as it kick-starts sale of overseas operations
Domino’s Pizza said today it has sold its Norwegian business to its existing minority shareholder as it moves to extricate itself from its loss-making European operations.
The pizza chain said it will sell its 71 per cent shareholding in the Norway business in return for the buyers’ stake in its Swedish operation and a nominal payment of one Norwegian krone (8p).
The deal will give Domino’s full ownership of its Swedish business which it will then look to offload.
“Now we have agreed the transaction for Norway, we will focus on progressing transactions for our businesses in Sweden, Switzerland and Iceland,” chief executive officer David Wild said.
The company has been trying to exit from its loss-making international markets as it struggles to control costs.
Domino’s will pay up to £7m for the Norway operations’ operating expenses in addition to funding its losses until the completion of the sale.
Shares in the FTSE 250 company, which is the international franchise of the US business, rose nearly two per cent to just under 313p this morning.
Analysts at Peel Hunt said the international disposal programme could help management “release the real potential of the core business”.
The analysts said: “The implementation of the disposal strategy will simplify the group and increase investor focus on the core UK business, which has delivered a resilient performance through a period of turbulence.”