(Reuters) -Nestle SA said on Tuesday it would cut its stake in L’Oreal by selling shares worth 8.9 billion euros ($10.03 billion) back to the French cosmetics brand, as the Nescafe maker sharpens its focus on its core food and beverage divisions.
Following the deal, Nestle said it would own 20.1% of L’Oreal.
The packaged foods maker also said its board had decided to buy back 20 billion Swiss francs ($21.63 billion) worth of shares between 2022 and 2024, adding that it would adjust this program should it make sizable acquisitions.
Nestle said it would terminate its current share repurchase plan by the end of the year, having bought back shares for 12.7 billion Swiss francs or almost two-thirds of the program volume.
L’Oreal around four years ago had underscored https://reut.rs/3GqHqcP its readiness to buy Nestle’s 23% stake in the cosmetics maker if the Swiss company was to sell it.
($1 = 0.8876 euros)
($1 = 0.9246 Swiss francs)
(Reporting by Praveen Paramasivam in Bengaluru; Editing by Ramakrishnan M.)
