Nestle to distribute $20 to shareholders via share buybacks

Food giant Nestle has decided to distribute up to 20 billion Swiss francs (20 billion dollars) to its shareholders in the next two years, the Swiss company said on Thursday.

Nestle announced its plan after selling its skin health branch to Swedish, Canadian and Abu Dhabi investors for 10.2 billion francs in early October.

“The distribution reflects Nestle’s continued strong cash generation as well as significant cash inflows from disposals.

The company said in a statement from its headquarters in Vevey, Switzerland.

The distribution will mainly be carried out by buying back shares.

However, the company that includes the KitKat, Nespresso and Maggi brands did not rule out adjusting the cash amount going to shareholders in case of large acquisitions.

Nestle also reported that its sales grew by 2.9 per cent to 68.4 billion francs in the first nine months of 2019, compared to the same period in 2018.

The increase was bolstered by Nestle’s strong performance in the United States and Brazil, outweighing flat growth in China.

Pet care and Starbucks-branded retail products performed well during the firth three quarters, while Nestle’s bottled water sales remained flat.