Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Punch Taverns Demerger; Share Price up 4%

Punch Taverns is to split its business in two and sell thousands of pubs as part of a major overhaul of the firm, reports the BBC.

Punch, the UK's biggest pubs group, said it would split its managed and leased pub operations to create two new public companies.

The size of the leased business will be halved to about 3,000 pubs.

The managed side will be named Spirit, with some pubs changed to existing brands such as Chef & Brewer, Fayre & Square and Flaming Grill.

Punch Taverns has been struggling with falling profits and rising debt, which hit £3.3bn last year.

Its shares rose 4% following the announcement.

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