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Monday, August 11, 2014

Brazil's Cutrale, Safra bid for Chiquita in bold expansion push, (NYSE: CQB)

Juice maker Cutrale and investment firm Safra Group said on Monday they had offered to acquire U.S.-based Chiquita Brands International Inc in a $610.5 million cash deal that rivaled an all-stock agreement with Irish tropical fruit company Fyffes Plc.Cutrale, based in Brazil, and Safra, a global banking and real estate group with strong roots in Brazil, said they were offering $13 per share in cash to Chiquita shareholders, a 29 percent premium to Chiquita's closing price on Friday.Chiquita is attempting to close a merger with Fyffes, which the two companies announced in March. The combined market value of Chiquita and Fyffes is currently close to $1 billion.Shares of Chiquita rose more than 30 percent in response to the competing offer. They ended the day at $13.30 on the New York Stock Exchange, above the offer price of $13, indicating that investors may expect a bidding war for the company. Shares of Fyffes fell more than 13 percent on Monday.

Chiquita Brands International, Inc. (CBII), along with its subsidiaries, is an international marketer and distributor of bananas and other fresh produce, sold under the Chiquita and other brand names in 70 countries, and packaged salads sold under the Fresh Express and other brand names primarily in the United States. Shares of CQB traded higher by 30.22% or $3.04/share to $13.10. In the past year, the shares have traded as low as $9.24 and as high as $13.68. On average, 329771 shares of CQB exchange hands on a given day and today's volume is recorded at 8617284.



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