Speciality bakery giant Aryzta has confirmed that it has entered into formal takeover talks with Elliott Advisors, a New York-based investment fund. On Thursday, Aryzta informed financial markets that it has now entered into what it termed “advanced discussions” with Elliott Advisors for the potential sale of the company.

No further details were disclosed and Aryzta said there is no certainty that Elliott will actually table a formal takeover offer for the company. Elliott Advisors manages almost €35bn in assets. Its investors include pension plans, sovereign wealth funds and high-net worth individuals and families.

Takeover talks

The formal takeover talks between Aryzta and Elliott come after months of squabbling between the board of Aryzta and its largest shareholders, Veraison and Cobas Asset Management.

The owner of Cuisine de France is due to hold a shareholder EGM on 16 September in order to fill a number of board positions, including a new chair to replace the outgoing Gary McGann.

In a letter to shareholders in July, McGann had confirmed that Aryzta had received a number of unsolicited takeover offers from third parties. It now looks like one of these unsolicited takeover approaches is set to move into more formal territory.

Dairy co-ops

Irish dairy co-ops like Arrabawn, Aurivo, Centenary Thurles, Dairygold, Kerry Co-op and Tipperary Co-op still hold some of the shares in Aryzta. Between them, the Irish dairy co-ops are thought to hold in the region of 1% to 2% of Aryzta shares.