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Carlsberg Group on Monday announced an agreement with PepsiCo Inc, removing a potential obstacle as it attempts to buy Britvic PLC.
Danish brewer Carlsberg said US drinks firm PepsiCo has agreed to waive a so-called change-of-control clause as part of its long-term bottling agreement with British soft drinks group Britvic.
This waiver will come into effect should an acquisition of Britvic by Carlsberg proceed to completion.
The clause was viewed effectively as a poison-pill arrangement that could have prevented an acquisition of Britvic by allowing Pepsi to end its bottling deal, making the UK company a less attractive takeover target.
So far, soft drinks manufacturer Britvic, the maker of Robinsons and famed for its ’posh tonics’, has rebuffed approaches from Carlsberg.
On Friday, Hemel Hempstead-based Britvic said it had rejected two bid proposals from Carlsberg, the second of which, made on June 11, valued the firm at £3.20 billion, or 1,250 pence per share.
Carlsberg believes that the potential transaction would ‘enable it to capture appealing long-term growth opportunities from Britvic’s comprehensive portfolio of leading brands in an attractive segment of the beverage market where Carlsberg already has a strong track record.’
But Britvic said the proposal undervalued the company and ‘unanimously’ rejected the plan.
The Times reported Friday that Carlsberg is preparing a third bid for Britvic, upping the ante to £3.58 billion.
On Monday, Carlsberg said it is considering its position and ‘there can be no certainty that any offer will be made.’
Shares in Britvic rose 7.5% to 1,175.53 pence each in London on Monday. It has a market capitalisation of £2.93 billion.
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