InBev Asks A-B to Halt Modelo Acquisition
BRUSSELS -- The plot thickens for the potential Anheuser-Busch/InBev merger, when the European company sent a letter to Anheuser-Busch's (A-B) CEO August A. Busch IV, asking him to not to pursue other transactions that would derail its unsolicited bid for $46.3 billion, Bloomberg News reported.
The other transaction is for Corona maker Grupo Modelo SAB, which has been in discussions with A-B for a possible purchase, the report stated. If A-B purchases Modelo, which is 50 percent owned by the U.S. brewer, it may make A-B too expensive, and undermine InBev's bid, according to the report.
"No alternative transaction that you could effectuate would create more value for your shareholders,'' Carlos Brito, chief executive officer of InBev, said in a letter to Busch. "We have the greatest respect for Grupo Modelo and its management and look forward to the opportunity to work with them to explore possible ways to expand the availability of the Grupo Modelo brands outside of North America."
InBev's bid, of $65 a share, would create the world's largest brewer by sales volume, according to the report.
The purchase of Modelo wouldn't necessarily stop InBev, according to Craig Hutson, a senior analyst at independent research firm Gimme Credit LLC in Chicago. If InBev is willing to drop below investment grade, the brewer could take on another $10 billion or more in debt to purchase both brewers, he told Bloomberg News.
The other transaction is for Corona maker Grupo Modelo SAB, which has been in discussions with A-B for a possible purchase, the report stated. If A-B purchases Modelo, which is 50 percent owned by the U.S. brewer, it may make A-B too expensive, and undermine InBev's bid, according to the report.
"No alternative transaction that you could effectuate would create more value for your shareholders,'' Carlos Brito, chief executive officer of InBev, said in a letter to Busch. "We have the greatest respect for Grupo Modelo and its management and look forward to the opportunity to work with them to explore possible ways to expand the availability of the Grupo Modelo brands outside of North America."
InBev's bid, of $65 a share, would create the world's largest brewer by sales volume, according to the report.
The purchase of Modelo wouldn't necessarily stop InBev, according to Craig Hutson, a senior analyst at independent research firm Gimme Credit LLC in Chicago. If InBev is willing to drop below investment grade, the brewer could take on another $10 billion or more in debt to purchase both brewers, he told Bloomberg News.