The Italian distiller, Davide Campari has bought French cognac maker Grand Marnier Group in a deal that values the family-owned company at 684 million euros ($760 million). Investors will get around 8,000 euros in cash per share. It seems overnight, Campari shares rose as much as 1.8 percent in Milan, building on Monday’s 5 percent gain.
“Grand Marnier is a French icon, with a rich 150-year history for which we have profound respect,” Campari Chief Executive Officer Robert Kunze-Concewitz said in the statement.
Since 2014, this has been the first acquisition for Campari and the biggest agreement since 2007. Not only does Grand Marnier produces cognac, but also has a portfolio of Armagnac and wines and gets more than half of its 140 million euros in sales from the U.S.
Campari is hoping that this purchase will add immediate profit on long term, full year basis. However, future plans anticipate that Campari may sell a villa surrounded by botanical gardens that Grand Marnier owns in Saint Jean Cap Ferrat, an exclusive peninsular town east of Nice, on the Mediterranean coast.
Source: Bloomberg