Glanbia plc has said that it is “well-positioned” to deliver on its strategic growth agenda and build on the strong financial performance of last year.

This statement follows a letter from an activist investment company which recently acquired a minority stake in the Kilkenny-based company.

Clearway Capital, which was was established in 2021 in Germany by Gianluca Ferrari, has outlined proposals which it claims could double the company’s market value.

The investment firm believes that Glanbia plc should be trading at over €21.08/share but the market continuously prices the company at a substantial discount.

The letter, seen by Agriland, claims that this is due to sub-optimal execution in Glanbia Performance Nutrition (GPN), frequent profit warnings and “a confusing corporate structure”.

GPN has a range of brands sold in over 100 markets globally including SlimFast and Optimum Nutrition.

Clearway said that it is optimistic about Glanbia’s potential given the strength of the brands and the quality of the assets that the company owns.

It has called on the board to immediately separate GPN into an “independent stand-alone company” while also streamlining the company’s European cheese joint ventures.

Clearway said that the Nutritional Solutions division is “a hidden gem within Glanbia’s complex structure that the market clearly does not appreciate”.

Glanbia growth

In a statement to Agriland, Glanbia plc outlined that it has a “clear strategy addressing key consumer health and wellness trends as a global, sustainable, purpose-led nutrition business”.

The company explained that its core capabilities in nutrition and supply chain are leveraged across its two complementary platforms spanning nutritional ingredient solutions and global leading brands.

Post-tax profits at Glanbia rose to €167.4 million in 2021, compared to €143.8 million in 2020, according to the company’s full-year accounts.

“The business performed strongly in 2021, plans further growth in 2022 and is well-positioned to deliver on its strategic growth agenda.

“We continue to engage openly and transparently with all our shareholders and will publish our 2022 Q1 (quarter one) interim management statement on Thursday, May 5,” a company spokesperson said.