Houlihan Lokey Advises Metcalfe’s skinny

Houlihan Lokey is pleased to announce that the shareholders of Metcalfe’s skinny Ltd have sold the remaining 74% of the company to Snyder’s Lance (NASDAQ: LNCE), who initially acquired a 26% stake in January 2016. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Houlihan Lokey served as the exclusive financial advisor to Metcalfe’s skinny and assisted in structuring and negotiating the transaction on their behalf. This deal represents another successful transaction for Houlihan Lokey in the Food & Beverage industry.

Founded in 2009 and based in London, Metcalfe’s skinny is the owner of Metcalfe’s skinny Popcorn, a premium ready-to-eat popcorn brand in the UK with a mission to provide better-for-you snack alternatives to consumers. The company markets its branded range of products in the fast-growing better-for-you snack and popcorn categories, predominantly in the UK.

Snyder’s Lance, who announced the acquisition of Diamond Foods (snack food company with brands including Kettle Chips®) in October 2015, is the second largest snack maker in the USA with a market capitalization of c.$3.4 billion. The addition of leading premium popcorn brand, Metcalfe’s skinny, to the UK’s leading premium crisp brand, Kettle Chips®, reflects the ambition of the Kettle Foods business to evolve into a more widely based premium snacking leader.

Compliments of Houlihan Lokey – a member of the EACCNY