REG - Applied Nutrition - Trading Update, Acquisition and Collaboration

Applied NutritionAnnouncement

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RNS Number : 3759G  Applied Nutrition PLC  01 June 2026

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INDIRECTLY, IN OR INTO OR FROM ANY JURISDICTION WHERE TO DO SO WOULD
CONSTITUTE A VIOLATION OF THE RELEVANT LAWS OR REGULATIONS OF SUCH
JURISDICTION.

 

This announcement contains inside information as stipulated under the Market
Abuse Regulation no 596/2014 (incorporated into UK law by virtue of the
European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 as amended by virtue of the Market Abuse
(Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019). Upon the publication of this
announcement via a regulatory information service, this inside information is
now considered to be in the public domain.

 

 1 June 2026

 

Applied Nutrition plc

(the "Group")

 

Group Trading Ahead of Expectations,

Acquisition of US Manufacturing Facility, and New North American Collaboration

 

Applied Nutrition plc, a leading sports nutrition, health and wellness brand,
today announces:

 

 ·             an upgrade to its expectations for the current financial year ending 31 July
               2026 ("FY26")(1), with revenue now expected to be approximately £148m and
               EBITDA margin in line with current consensus market expectations(2) (both
               excluding the effect of the acquisition announced today);
 ·             the acquisition of the trade and majority of assets(3) of Nutrablend Group,
               which includes a manufacturing and warehouse facility in the United States;
               and
 ·             a significant new North American flavour collaboration agreement with
               Mondelēz International to allow the Group to develop and manufacture AN Supps
               & SOUR PATCH KIDS® and AN Supps & SWEDISH FISH® branded sports
               nutrition products.

 

FY26 Outlook(4)

 

Trading in the current financial year to date remains strong with continued
momentum across the Group. Excluding any contribution from the acquisition of
Nutrablend, the Board now expects the Group's FY26 revenue to be ahead of
current consensus market expectations(2) at approximately £148m, with the
EBITDA margin expected to be in line with current consensus market
expectations(2). The EBITDA contribution for FY26 from the acquisition of
Nutrablend is not expected to be meaningful.

 

The Group will provide a further update on performance when it announces its
FY26 trading update in August.

 

US Manufacturing Acquisition

 

The Group has acquired the trade and majority of assets of Nutrablend
Group(3), a US-based sports nutrition manufacturer, for a total cash
consideration of $16m (approximately £12m), which has been financed from the
Group's existing cash resources(5). The acquired assets include:

 ·             a freehold fully fitted-out facility for manufacturing and warehousing (the
               "Facility") which has been independently valued at approximately $7m; and
 ·             production equipment, stock, and Nutrablend's two in-house brands, Basic
               Supplements(6) ("Basic") & GR8 Lifestyle(7) ("GR8").

 

The well-invested Facility located in Buffalo, New York, has its own Research
& Development and design teams. Following the acquisition, the US
operation will have the same vertically integrated model as the UK business.

 

The acquisition significantly enhances the Group's operational footprint in
North America and is expected to deliver the following strategic benefits:

 ·             production capacity of up to c.$300m of revenue per year in the US -
               supporting both existing and future customer demand across the Group's
               existing product ranges (AN & ABE), newly acquired brands (Basic &
               GR8), and generating revenue from white label manufacturing;
 ·             improved service levels for North American customers through reduced lead
               times and improved speed to market with new product development (NPD);
 ·             lower freight, logistics and import duty costs in North America;
 ·             greater operational and supply chain resilience, reducing reliance on
               cross-border shipping and reducing working capital tie-up due to lower
               inventory level requirements;
 ·             increased UK manufacturing headroom with moving production of North American
               sales volume to the new Facility; and
 ·             c.100 employees including an experienced management team.

 

The acquisition includes:

 ·             freehold six-acre site with 107,000 square feet of office, warehousing and
               production space in Buffalo, New York, valued at approximately $7m;
 ·             production equipment including five powder filling lines, three stick pack
               filling machines and other plant and machinery estimated at approximately $4m;
 ·             inventory estimated at approximately $5m; and
 ·             two brands, Basic Supplements(6) and GR8 Lifestyle(7), and all other
               intangible assets such as customer lists and goodwill.

 

Liabilities assumed as part of the deal are expected to be below $0.1m.

 

The existing powder manufacturing currently carried out in the Group's UK
facility & US co-manufacturers for US sales will be moved to the Buffalo
site, which will also continue to produce the Basic & GR8 brands plus
white label for other brands. The two brands being acquired will operate under
the existing AN Supps business whilst the white label manufacturing business
will trade as 'AN Labz'. The Group will have the opportunity to cross-sell its
existing ranges to current Nutrablend customers, while expanding the reach of
Nutrablend's two in-house brands through Applied Nutrition's global
distribution network.

 

It is expected that this acquisition will be earnings enhancing in FY27,
contributing at least an additional $30m in revenue at high single digit
EBITDA margin, of which approximately 65% of the revenue will be generated
from white label manufacturing.  The short to medium term strategy for this
new business is to grow the white label volumes to utilise capacity whilst
growing higher margin sales of own brands over the longer term.

North American Flavour Collaboration Deal - SOUR PATCH KIDS® Licensing
Contract with Mondelēz International

The Group has entered into a new licensing agreement with Mondelēz
International for the development and manufacture of AN Supps & SOUR PATCH
KIDS® and AN Supps & SWEDISH FISH® branded sports nutrition products for
the US & Canadian markets. Under the agreement, Applied Nutrition will
leverage its formulation expertise, product development capability and new US
manufacturing infrastructure to bring a collaborative range of products to
market.

The range will initially be stocked in 2,200 Walmart stores and 1,300 GNC
corporate stores from August 2026.

 

Thomas Ryder, CEO of Applied Nutrition, said:

 

"The acquisition of a US manufacturing site significantly strengthens our
ability to support ongoing growth in the region and provides us with the
ability to expand our North American offering, harnessing Nutrablend's
experienced management team. Importantly, it allows us to launch new products
at the same pace as we do in the UK, improving our responsiveness to consumer
and market demand and reinforcing a clear competitive advantage for Applied.

 

The partnership with Mondelēz International on the Sour Patch Kids &
Swedish Fish brands brings two more globally recognised names into our
portfolio. This agreement represents a significant endorsement of the Group's
capabilities, underlines the strength of our execution and shows our ability
to deliver new, vibrant products to market through our NPD engine.

 

Demand across our markets shows no sign of abating and we are well positioned
to deliver on what consumers need for their health and wellness journey. As an
agile but disciplined business, we're confident that our delivery and
expansion will continue to underpin the long-term outlook for our business."

 

Notes:

(1) All figures used in this announcement relating to FY26 remain subject to
audit.

(2) Consensus market expectations for FY26 as calculated by the Group
immediately before this announcement are:

 

 Measure          FY26
 Revenue          £140.3 million
 Adjusted EBITDA  £39.5 million

 EBITDA Margin    28.2%

( )

The Group periodically updates these calculations and publishes them at:
https://www.appliednutritionplc.com/consensus-earnings-estimates

(3) Trade receivables and cash are not being acquired. More details of the
current business can be seen at https://nutrablendfoods.com

(4) Please see cautionary note regarding forward-looking statements below.

(5) The Group has also entered into an amendment of its revolving credit
facility with its main bankers (Royal Bank of Scotland plc) to extend the
available credit to £30.0m but has not yet drawn down on the facility

(6) https://basicsupplements.com

(7) https://gr8lifestyle.com

 

Further information and contacts

 

Information for investors can be found on the Group's website at
www.appliednutritionplc.com

 

 Applied Nutrition plc                                             via Alma
 Thomas Ryder, Chief Executive Officer
 Steven Granite, Chief Operating Officer
 Joe Pollard, Chief Financial Officer

 Alma Strategic Communications                                     +44 (0) 203 405 0205

 (Public Relations adviser to Applied Nutrition)                   appliednutrition@almastrategic.com
 Rebecca Sanders-Hewett, Sam Modlin, Joe Pederzolli, Sarah Peters

 

This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of
the Market Abuse Regulation.  The person responsible for arranging the
release of this announcement on behalf of Applied Nutrition is Joe Pollard,
Chief Financial Officer.

 

Forward-looking statements

 

Cautionary Statement - Certain statements included or incorporated by
reference within this announcement may constitute "forward-looking statements"
in respect of the Group's operations, performance, prospects and/or financial
condition. Forward-looking statements are sometimes, but not always,
identified by their use of a date in the future or such words and words of
similar meaning as "anticipates", "aims", "due", "could", "may", "will",
"should", "expects", "believes", "intends", "plans", "potential", "targets",
"goal" or "estimates". By their nature, forward looking statements involve a
number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions and actual results or events
may differ materially from those expressed or implied by those statements.
Accordingly, no assurance can be given that any particular expectation will be
met, and reliance should not be placed on any forward-looking statement.
Additionally, forward-looking statements regarding past trends or activities
should not be taken as a representation that such trends or activities will
continue in the future. No responsibility or obligation is accepted to update
or revise any forward-looking statement resulting from new information, future
events or otherwise. Nothing in this announcement should be construed as a
profit forecast. This announcement does not constitute or form part of any
offer or invitation to sell, or any solicitation of any offer to purchase any
shares or other securities in the Company, nor shall it or any part of it or
the fact of its distribution form the basis of, or be relied on in connection
with, any contract or commitment or investment decisions relating thereto, nor
does it constitute a recommendation regarding the shares or other securities
of the Company. Past performance cannot be relied upon as a guide to future
performance and persons needing advice should consult an independent financial
adviser. Statements in this announcement reflect the knowledge and information
available at the time of its preparation. Liability arising from anything in
this announcement shall be governed by English law. Nothing in this
announcement shall exclude any liability under applicable laws that cannot be
excluded in accordance with such laws.

 

Notes to editors

 

Applied Nutrition plc (LSE: APN) is a leading sports nutrition, health and
wellness brand, which formulates and creates nutrition products with a stated
aim of being the world's most trusted and innovative brand in the market.

 

Headquartered in the UK, the Group sells products in over 85 countries
worldwide and has a diverse product range, targeting elite athletes, gym goers
and health-conscious consumers. Applied Nutrition has developed and launched
four ranges under the umbrella of the Applied Nutrition brand - Applied
Nutrition, ABE, BodyFuel, and Endurance. Across the four ranges, the Group
sells over 120 different products.

 

The Group's success has been built on an exceptional product range developed
in-house in Knowsley, Liverpool & Buffalo, New York by  teams of experts,
allowing products to be developed efficiently delivering new innovation to the
market, keeping existing products up to date, and introducing products aligned
with latest trends.

 

The Group largely operates a global business-to-business (B2B) model, which
has facilitated a low risk, highly cost-effective go-to-market strategy and
has enabled strong, profitable growth in the UK, Europe and other
international geographies. The vertically integrated B2B business model and
strategy has enabled the Group to become a fast-growing, highly profitable and
cash generative global supplier in the sports nutrition, health and wellness
market.

 

For further information, please visit www.appliednutritionplc.com

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