Conagra Foods to Acquire Ralcorp

By CnAgri Print

ConAgra Foods, Inc. and Ralcorp Holdings, Inc. announced that the boards of directors of both companies have unanimously approved a definitive agreement under which ConAgra Foods will acquire Ralcorp, the largest manufacturer of private label food in the U.S.

Under the terms of the agreement, Ralcorp shareholders will receive $90.00 per share in cash for each outstanding share of common stock held, representing a 28.2% premium to the closing price of Ralcorp's common stock on November 26, 2012, and a 24.9% premium to the average closing price of Ralcorp's common stock for the 30 trading days ending November 26, 2012.

The transaction is valued at approximately $6.8 billion, including the assumption of debt. This transaction creates one of the largest packaged food companies in North America, with sales of approximately $18 billion annually and more than 36,000 employees.

It will also position ConAgra Foods as the largest private label packaged food business in North America, with combined private label sales of approximately $4.5 billion.