British soft drinks maker Britvic has rejected a takeover proposal worth £3.11 billion from Carlsberg group, the companies said on Friday.
This is the second approach from the Danish brewer that the British company has turned down.
Shares in Britvic – which sells cocktail mixers and other non-alcoholic beverages – jumped 14% to 1,153 pence, while Carlsberg’s shares fell about 8%.
Carlsberg is looking to expand its focus on categories including cider, hard lemonade hard seltzers, and ready-to-drink cocktails.
The company hopes to do this as it sees rising consumer interest in beverages outside the traditional beer category.
Nordnet analyst Per Hansen commented on why Carlsberg’s shares were down, saying, “Britvic will be a major takeover, and at the same time, such a large takeover could have implications for the dividend and share buyback capacity.”
Expanding Product Offering
The Danish company said it was weighing its options after Britvic turned down the second offer.
It added that any formal offer, if made, would be in cash and fully financed through debt.
Carlsberg has until 19 July to make a firm offer to Britvic or walk away.
All major brewers are looking to expand into new products as popularity wanes in some markets, with some drinkers switching to spirits or cutting back on alcohol altogether.
Carlsberg’s “beyond beer” portfolio accounted for only 2% of total volumes in February 2024.
Carlsberg’s latest proposed price of 1,250 pence per Britvic share represented a premium of more than 23% to Britvic’s closing share price on Thursday.
This was up from an earlier proposal of 1,200 pence.
The British firm’s shares were trading below the proposed offer price, indicating that investors were uncertain about the potential deal.
Britvic sells drinks in Britain, Ireland, Brazil, and other international markets including France, the Middle East and Asia.
In the UK, its famous brands include Robinsons fruit cordial, R. White’s lemonade, and it bottles Pepsi drinks there.
Carlsberg, which also bottles Pepsi drinks in some markets, sells other dinks including energy drinks, soft drinks and non-alcoholic beer.
Drinks other than beer made up about 19% of volumes in its most recent financial year.
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