InBev Boosts Bid for Bud, Making Buyout Likely

Deal now tops $50 million, and Anheuser is likely to accept
By Nick McMaster,  Newser Staff
Posted Jul 11, 2008 10:55 AM CDT
InBev Boosts Bid for Bud, Making Buyout Likely
In this Oct. 25, 2005 file photo, bottled and draught Budweiser beers are shown at Foley's Bar in St. Louis.    (AP Photo/Tom Gannam, file)

InBev has increased its bid for Anheuser-Busch to $70 a share, the Wall Street Journal reports. Although willing to replace the Budweiser-brewer’s board in a hostile takeover, the $5-per-share boost—bringing the total deal to $50 billion—is a signal that InBev would prefer to keep things friendly. Anheuser will probably accept the new offer, sources told the Journal.

Anheuser had rejected InBev’s $65-per-share offer as “substantially undervaluing” the firm. But the brewer has reason to take a friendly buyout: it would mean InBev could keep top Busch execs in place. The merged company would be the world’s largest brewer, with about 300 beer brands across six continents. (More Budweiser stories.)

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