Diageo plc to buy 118.4m EABL shares at Sh22.7b
Business
By
David Njaaga
| Oct 14, 2022
Diageo plc has expressed interest in acquiring 118.4 million shares of the East African Breweries Limited, cementing its majority shareholding in the beer company.
Diageo, in a public notice published in both The Standard and Nation newspapers on Friday, October 14, said it intends to buy each share at Sh192.
The EABL shares currently trade at Sh137.25 per share.
Diageo, in complying with the regulations, has consequently written to the Capital Markets Authority (CMA) over its intention to cement its majority shareholding at the firm.
If the CMA approves Diageo Kenya's shares purchase, then the buyer will push its shareholding from the current 50.03 per cent to 65 per cent (514,003,331 shares).
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The 118.4 million targeted shares represent 14.97 per cent of the total shareholding at EABL.
"Diageo Kenya, therefore, currently has effective control of EABL within the meaning of the take-over regulations," said the company.
Diageo plans to acquire the shares on January 30, 2023 if it gets the CMA's approval.
Diageo is a listed company on both the London Stock Exchange and the New York Stock Exchange, with its products sold in more than 180 countries globally.