DELTA is in the final stages before its sale, making it one of the last two assets in Vivartia’s portfolio still held by CVC Capital Partners.
Together with the frozen dough business, the historic dairy company is one of the last chapters in the US fund’s divestment from the Greek food group. While prospective buyers have shown interest, the big question is not so much whether a buyer can be found, but the price they will be willing to pay.
The financial statements for 2025 reveal a business with consolidated revenue of €299m, up 2.5%.
Adjusted EBITDA, excluding the impact of IFRS 16, rose 20% to €22.2m from €18.5m in 2024. However, reported EBITDA fell to €16.9m from €18.4m, while the group returned to a post-tax loss of €2.6m, against a profit of €700,000 in 2024.
At the level of pre-tax results, the company recorded a loss of €1.9m, compared with a profit of €400,000.
Financial pressures
Management attributes a significant part of the charge to exceptional bad-debt provisions of €4.5m. Of this, €2.5m relates to the acceptance of the assignment of a doubtful receivable from a related group company, while the remaining €2m was an exceptional bad-debt charge on a trade receivable. According to management, without these exceptional and non-recurring charges, the company would have recorded a profit of €1.9m for the year.
The distinction between adjusted and reported EBITDA is particularly important in a sale process. On the basis of the former, the company’s operating profitability margin is 7.4%, while on the basis of the latter it is just 5.6%.
Despite higher revenue, gross profit fell to €78.6m from €79.7m, while the gross margin narrowed to 26.3% from 27.4%.
In fresh milk, the company maintained a 17.8% share by value and 13.1% by volume in a market that contracted by 2.1%. Performance was better in high-pasteurised milk, where the dairy company increased its share to 28.5% by value, while the ‘Tou Topou Mas’ brand recorded sales growth of 11.7% by value and 18.5% by volume.
In chocolate milk, where Milko remains one of Greece’s best-known brands, the company maintained a 37.5% share by value. In baby yoghurts, Advance continues to dominate, with a share of more than 78% in the subcategory. By contrast, in plant-based drinks and some dessert categories, intensifying competition and the arrival of new players are affecting market shares.
Last year, exports rose by 5.4% by value and 8.7% by volume, with yoghurt accounting for 86% of international activity. Notably, 47% of total yoghurt production is now destined for export.
Export growth, however, does not remove the financial challenges. At the end of 2025, the group’s total borrowings, excluding lease liabilities, stood at €80.5m, down €13m from 2024. Of this amount, €67.8m was long-term debt and €12.7m short-term debt. Despite the reduction in debt, net finance costs rose to €7m from €6.1m.
On 31 March 2026, a capital restructuring was carried out, involving the issue and subsequent cancellation of 13,970,350 shares with a nominal value of €2.93 each, as part of a return of capital to the sole shareholder. The amount totalled €40.9m and, according to the report, was used to repay an equal amount of an intragroup loan.