Britvic accepts £3.3b Carlsberg takeover deal

Danish brewing giant Carlsberg has agreed to buy Robinsons squash maker Britvic in a £3.3b deal.

It comes after weeks of negotiations between the two firms which saw Carlsberg’s two previous offers rejected.

Britvic told shareholders it would recommend the deal, which valued the company at £4.1b excluding debt.

Carlsberg will pay Britvic shareholders 1,315p per share while they will also receive a special dividend payment of 25p per share.

The Danish brewer said it intended to create a single integrated drinks company in the UK, to be named Carlsberg Britvic, which would have a wide portfolio of beer and soft drinks brands including J20, Pepsi Max and Hobgoblin.

Carlsberg Group chief executive Jacob Aarup-Andersen said: “With this transaction, we are combining Britvic’s high-quality soft drinks portfolio with Carlsberg’s strong beer portfolio and route-to-market capabilities, creating an enhanced proposition across the UK and other markets in Western Europe.”

Britvic non-executive chair Ian Durant said: “The proposed transaction creates an enlarged international group that is well-placed to capture the growth opportunities in multiple drinks sectors. Crucially, to remain competitive at a time when the market is being shaped by the trend of increasing consolidation among bottling partners, Carlsberg’s agreement with PepsiCo provides the combined group with a strong platform for continued success.”

The soft drinks firm also provided a Q3 trading update today, reporting £502.9m revenue for the quarter, 6% up on the same period in 2023. The year to date revenue total is nearly £1.4b, 9% ahead of this stage the previous year.

In a separate announcement this morning, Carlsberg said it is to acquire Marston’s 40% stake in its joint venture brewing business.