Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway is bringing Kraft Foods Group into the fold. (AP Image)
(Bloomberg) — Kraft Foods Group Inc. will merge with H.J. Heinz Co. in a deal orchestrated by 3G Capital and Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc., creating the third-largest food and beverage company in North America.
Kraft shareholders will receive 49 percent of the stock in the combined entity, plus a special cash dividend of $16.50 a share, the companies said in a statement Wednesday. Berkshire and 3G will invest $10 billion in the new business, which will be known as Kraft Heinz Co. It will have dual headquarters in Pittsburgh and the Chicago area, with current Heinz Chief Executive Officer Bernardo Hees staying at the helm.
The deal creates a stable of household names — everything from Heinz ketchup to Jell-O — with revenue of about $28 billion. It also could presage more consolidation in the U.S. food industry, which is struggling to reignite growth. Buffett and 3G, the private-equity firm founded by Brazilian billionaire Jorge Paulo Lemann, previously teamed up to buy Heinz in 2013 and they cut costs, a strategy they aim to repeat with Kraft.
“3G has squeezed a lot out of Heinz and now they will do the same job at Kraft,” David Turner, an analyst at research firm Mintel, said in an interview. “When Buffett invests in a sector, it gives a sign that the sector is ripe for acquisitions. This will flag up other opportunities.”
Kraft shares soared as much as 33 percent to $81.50 in New York, the biggest intraday gain since the company split from Mondelez International Inc. more than two years ago. That gives Kraft a valuation of about $48 billion.
