The AP is reporting today that Anheuser-Busch is “likely to accept a sweetened buyout offer from the Belgian-based brewer InBev SA as early as this weekend, a published report said.” On Friday, InBev upped their offer to from $65 per share to $70, a nearly 10% increase in the price. As noted by the AP story, “A deal would be a stunning turnaround from the often heated rhetoric between the two companies over the last several days.” On Friday, the news helped boost A-B’s share price to $66.50, an 8.6% rise. Juli Niemann, an analyst with the investment firm Smith Moore & Co. likewise believes an agreement will be forthcoming any time now.
“It really is all about the money,” Niemann said. “We just had to get a little bit more on the table. Bottom line is the rest is just housekeeping – what’s going to be the name of the new company, that sort of thing. The layoffs will go ahead. Asset sales – you’ve got to pay for it.”