UK food-and-drinks group Princes has said it expects to close “at least one acquisition in the next couple of months”.
The canned food and soft-drinks supplier said its “M&A pipeline remains active”, with the number of options it is assessing increasing.
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“Management expects to complete at least one acquisition in the next couple of months, although there can be no certainty regarding timing or completion until definitive agreements are executed and relevant approvals obtained,” Princes said today (14 May) as the company issued a trading update for the first quarter of the year.
The branded and private-label group did not disclose full quarterly accounts but said revenue grew 5.9% year-on-year to £506.6m ($684.5m).
New businesses added to the group from parent NewPrinces, including Italian baby-food business Plasmon, boosted the UK-listed firm’s top line.
Princes said its “adjusted EBITDA” increased 17% to £38.2m.
The company said its first-quarter revenues “reflected the normal seasonal profile of the food and beverage sector”. Volumes, the company said, are “softer” in the early part of the calendar year following the festive period, alongside “typical retailer inventory optimisation dynamics”.
Princes reports revenue from five business units. Its Italian Products arm saw revenue jump almost 44% to £115m, boosted by the recent integration of businesses like Plasmon, which New Princes acquired last year from Kraft Heinz. From the start of 2026, Princes Group is managing Plasmon under an operating lease.
Foods remains the largest of Princes’ five units. Revenue dipped 0.1% to £159.7m. Revenue from the Fish unit slipped 0.7% to £89.3m. Oils revenue grew 5.2% to £78.6m.
However, revenue from Princes’ Drinks unit declined 13.4% to £64m, hit by what the company said was an “unwinding of the exceptional orange juice commodity price cycle” seen during 2024 and the first quarter of last year.
Princes said the performance of its drinks business in the first quarter of 2025 benefited from “the timing of pricing adjustments following the decline in orange juice prices. The group expects this effect to progressively normalise over the coming quarters as the comparison basis moderates”.
By market, UK sales fell 5.6% to £337m. Sales in Italy more than doubled to £52.8m. Meanwhile, sales in Germany increased 48.5% to £29.7m.
Looking ahead, Princes said it expects “further profitability improvement” for the group through this year, helped by efficiency measures implemented last year, as well as “ongoing synergy delivery and continued operational discipline across the business”.
It added: “Whilst the broader macro-economic and inflationary environment remains uncertain, particularly in relation to energy, transport and selected raw material categories, the group continues to actively manage these pressures through procurement initiatives, operational efficiencies and disciplined pricing mechanisms where appropriate.”
Shares in Princes stood at 385.25p at 11:50 BST today, up 1.65% on the day.
