Imvescor announces normal course issuer bid

MONTREAL, Jan. 18, 2016 /CNW Telbec/ - Imvescor Restaurant Group Inc. ("Imvescor" or the "Company") (TSX:IRG), announced today that it has received approval from the Toronto Stock Exchange ("TSX") to implement a normal course issuer bid to purchase for cancellation up to 2,747,633 common shares during the period commencing January 20, 2016 and ending no later than January 19, 2017, representing approximately 5 per cent of the 54,952,674 common shares outstanding as at the close of markets on January 11, 2016.

The normal course issuer bid will be conducted through the facilities of the TSX and/or alternative trading systems in Canada or by such other means as may be permitted by the TSX or a securities regulatory authority and will conform to their regulations. Purchases under the normal course issuer bid will be made by means of open market transactions on the TSX and/or alternative trading systems or by such other means as the TSX or a securities regulatory authority may permit.

Under TSX rules, Imvescor will be allowed to purchase daily a maximum of 25,267 common shares representing 25% of the average daily trading volume, as calculated per the TSX rules for the most recently completed six calendar months. In addition, Imvescor may make, once per week, a block purchase (as such term is defined in the TSX Company Manual) of common shares not directly or indirectly owned by insiders of Imvescor, in accordance with TSX rules. The common shares purchased pursuant to the normal course issuer bid will be cancelled. The price to be paid by Imvescor for any common share will be the market price at the time of acquisition, plus brokerage fees, or such other price as the TSX or a securities regulatory authority may permit.

The Company intends to enter into an automatic share purchase plan with a designated broker to allow for the purchase of common shares under the normal course issuer bid at times when the Company would ordinarily not be permitted to purchase common shares due to regulatory restrictions or self-imposed blackout periods.

Although the Company's priority remains the implementation of its strategic plan, the management and the board of directors of Imvescor believe that the purchase by Imvescor of its common shares may, under appropriate circumstances, be a responsible investment and a desirable use of its available cash, including all or part of the cash generated by the exercise of warrants, to increase shareholder value. Within the past 12 months, Imvescor has not purchased any of its common shares.

About Imvescor Restaurant Group Inc.

Imvescor Restaurant Group Inc. is a dynamic and innovative organisation in the family and casual dining restaurant industry. The Company is a franchise and licensing business that operates restaurants in Eastern Canada under four banners: Pizza Delight®, operating primarily in Atlantic Canada, in the family/mid-scale segment, Trattoria di Mikes® and Scores®, operating primarily in Québec in the family and casual dining segments and the take-out and delivery segments, and Bâton Rouge®, operating in Québec, Ontario and Nova Scotia in the casual dining segment. The Company also licenses to third parties the right to manufacture and sell prepared food products under the Pizza Delight®, Trattoria di Mikes®, Scores® and Bâton Rouge® brands and through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Groupe Commensal Inc. manufactures and sells vegetarian branded food products in grocery stores and retail outlets under the Commensal® brand.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities laws, including but not limited to, IRG's business objectives, estimates, outlook, strategies and priorities and all other statements other than statements of historical facts. Forward-looking statements may include estimates, intentions, plans, expectations, opinions, forecasts, projections, guidance or other statements that are not statements of fact. Forward-looking statements are often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as "may", "should", "would", "will", "expect", "plan", "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "predict", "potential, "targeting", "intend", "could", "might", "continue", "outlook" or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. All such forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the "safe harbour" provisions of applicable securities laws.

Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors outside of IRG's control. A number of factors could cause the actual results of IRG to differ materially from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to: risks associated with quality control, food borne illnesses and health concerns, adverse changes to economic conditions, the Company's ability to retain certain key personnel, the Company's ability to respond to various competitive factors affecting its operations, franchise development and growth of the retail licensing opportunities, changes in consumer preferences, the Company's retail products dependence on the strength of the Company's restaurant brands, the protection of the Company's intellectual property, the success of the restaurant rejuvenation plan, the Company's dependence on royalty stream, the Company's reliance on suppliers and availability and quality of raw materials, changes in the Company's relationships with its franchisees, the Company's ability to open new restaurants, the closure of restaurants, the impact of an increase in Company-owned restaurants, the Company's ability to renew leases and limit lease exposure, the risks associated with negative publicity and its impact on the Company's reputation, compliance with regulations governing confidentiality of guest information, potential litigation and other complaints, compliance with government regulations, the Company's dependence on third parties, changes in laws concerning employees, changes in the Company's relationships with its employees, the Company's ability to ensure workplace safety, risks associated with franchise regulations, compliance with regulations governing alcoholic beverages, environmental risks and regulations, public safety issues, the Company's dependence on technology, risks of underreporting of sales by franchisees, inherent risks associated with internal control over financing reporting, the indebtedness of the Company and the restrictive covenants to which it is subject, the impact of sales tax upon System Sales, the risk associated with the Company's dividend policy, the impact of seasonality and other factors on quarterly operating results, the risk of uninsured losses, changes in commodity prices and other factors referenced in the Company's Annual Information Form and the Company's other continuous disclosure filings which are available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. These factors are not intended to represent a complete list of the factors that could affect IRG but should, however, be considered carefully.

Further, although the forward-looking statements contained herein are based on information currently available to IRG's management and on the current assumptions, intentions, plans, expectations, estimates, opinions, forecasts, projections and other assumptions made by IRG's management in light of its experience and perception of historical trends, current conditions and expected future developments (such as IRG's future growth, results of operations, performance and opportunities as well as the future of the economic environment in which it operates), as well as other factors that IRG's management believes are appropriate and reasonable in the circumstances and on the date of this press release, there can be no assurance that such assumptions, intentions, plans, expectations, estimates, opinions, forecasts, projections and other assumptions will prove to be correct or that actual results will not differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking statements.

Forward-looking statements are provided herein for the purpose of giving information about IRG's current strategic priorities, expectations and plans, allowing investors and others to get a better understanding of IRGI's business outlook and operating environment. Readers are cautioned, however, that such information may not be appropriate for other purposes and should not place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements contained in this press release. IRG assumes no obligation to update or revise such forward-looking statements to reflect new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable securities laws. Except as otherwise indicated, forward-looking statements do not reflect the potential impact of any nonrecurring or other special items or of any transactions that may be announced or that may occur after the date of this press release. The financial impact of these transactions and non-recurring and other special items can be complex and depends on the facts particular to each of them. IRG therefore cannot describe the expected impact in a meaningful way or in the same way it presents known risks affecting the business. IRG's forward-looking statements are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement.

 

SOURCE Imvescor Restaurant Group Inc.

Imvescor, 514.341.5544, http://www.imvescor.ca; Investor Relations: [email protected], Frank Hennessey, President and Chief Executive Officer, Tania M. Clarke, Chief Financial Officer; Media Relations: ACJ Communication - Daniel Granger 514.840.7990; Our Brands, Pizza Delight®: www.pizzadelight.com, Scores®: www.scores.ca,Trattoria di Mikes®: www.mikes.ca, Bâton Rouge®: www.batonrouge.ca