MADRID, 20 Oct. (EUROPA PRESS) -
Philip Morris International (PMI) has decided to increase its purchase offer by 9.4% for the Swedish tobacco company Swedish Match, specialized in snuff and chewing tobacco, to a total of 176,400 million Swedish crowns (16,110 million euros) , warning that he will not increase the price of his proposal again.
Specifically, through its subsidiary Philip Morris Holland Holdings (PMHH) it has offered a cash payment of 116 crowns for each share of Swedish Match, which represents an increase of 9.4% compared to the 106 crowns offered by Swedish Match. purchase launched last May.
The new price represents a premium of 5% compared to the closing price of the Swedish company's shares this Wednesday, but 52.5% over the price marked at the close of the session on May 9.
In this regard, the company has warned that, in accordance with Stockholm's Nasdaq takeover rules, PMHH will not increase the price further in the revised offer.
"We believe that the best final price of our revised offer by Swedish Match offers very attractive value for shareholders of both Swedish Match and PMI," said Jacek Olczak, CEO of PMI, stressing that the new offer maintains a condition of acceptance. 90%, "which is essential to capture the full potential of the combination".
The executive also believes that the deteriorating global economic outlook, stock markets and interest rate environment since the time of the initial offer "further strengthens the attractiveness of the revised offer for Swedish Match shareholders."
The company has indicated that the offer acceptance period will expire on November 4, although PMHH reserves the right to extend the term even further.
On the other hand, PMI has reached an agreement with Altria to put an end to the commercial agreements they maintained regarding the commercialization of IQOS in the United States, whose rights will become completely the first from April 2024 in exchange for 2,700 million dollars. (2,754 million euros).
In this way, PMI will pay an initial consideration of 1,000 million dollars (1,020 million euros), while the remaining 1,700 million dollars (1,734 million euros) will be paid no later than July 2023.
"This agreement gives PMI full commercialization rights for IQOS in the US within approximately 18 months and provides a clear path to realize the full potential of the product in the world's largest smoke-free market," said Jacek Olczak. , CEO of PMI, for whom the agreement also avoids what could have been an uncertain and lengthy legal process that would have hindered the rapid deployment of IQOS in the US.
"We remain committed to creating long-term value," said Billy Gifford, Altria's chief executive officer. "We believe this settlement provides us with fair compensation and greater flexibility in allocating resources to Moving Beyond Smoking," he added.
