Finsbury Food delivers 'strong' H2 trading performance

Bakery chain Finsbury Food said on Wednesday that it had delivered a "strong" trading performance in the six months ended 26 June.

Finsbury stated second-half revenues were up 9.1% year-on-year despite experiencing further Covid-19 delays, resulting in full-year revenues increasing 2.3% to £313.3m - just shy of pre-pandemic levels.

Revenues from the AIM-listed group's core UK bakery division increased 0.8% for the full year, driven by "a strong second half" as the recovery of the firm's foodservice business continued, albeit at a slower-than-expected pace due to ongoing coronavirus-related restrictions.

Finsbury's overseas division delivered "an extremely positive performance" in the second half versus the corresponding period in the prior year, with full-year overseas revenues up 13.4% year-on-year.

Chief executive John Duffy said: "It is testament to the hard work and commitment of our teams that we have been able to successfully manage and adapt the business under challenging circumstances, resulting in year-on-year revenue growth and a total sales figure almost at pre-pandemic levels.

"Looking ahead, while the current operating environment continues to experience near-term uncertainty amidst challenging economic conditions, assuming trading conditions continue to normalise, we are confident in our ability to make further progress in the current financial year and in being able to deliver on our longer-term growth ambitions."

As of 1010 BST, Finsbury Food shares were up 0.55% at 91.50p.