Sazerac Eyes German Schnapps Maker Berentzen, Shares Soar 22%
BFA is trading near its 52-week low of $23.01 (14% above the low).
Summary
Sazerac, the privately held spirits giant behind Southern Comfort and Fireball, is in takeover talks with Berentzen, a German schnapps maker with a market cap of about €35 million. Berentzen confirmed the discussions and its shares jumped 22% to a 14-month high. This follows Sazerac's unsolicited $32/share bid for Brown-Forman earlier this year, which was rejected as not actionable. The Berentzen move signals Sazerac's continued acquisition drive, though the target is much smaller and struggling with weak demand in Germany. For Brown-Forman, the news is a reminder of Sazerac's aggressive expansion but does not directly change its own situation.
At the time of this announcement, BFA was trading at $26.27 on NYSE in the Trade & Services sector, with a market capitalization of approximately $11.9B. The 52-week trading range was $23.01 to $31.14. This news item was assessed with positive market sentiment and an importance score of 7 out of 10. Source: Reuters.