InBev has closed its purchase of US brewer Anheuser-Busch Inc to create the world's largest brewer in the biggest cash acquisition in history.
As of yesterday, the maker of Stella Artois and Beck's will be known as Anheuser-Busch InBev. Its shares will trade on the Euronext Brussels stock exchange under a new symbol, ABI, starting November 20th.
Shares of Anheuser-Busch, maker of Budweiser and Michelob, have ceased trading on the New York Stock Exchange pending their acquisition by InBev for $70 per share, or a total of $52 billion.
The combined company will brew about a quarter of the world's beer and generate about $36 billion in annual sales, helping regain its position as the world's top brewer. InBev lost the title last year to London-listed SABMiller.
Belgium-based InBev, known for fierce cost-cutting, must now deliver on its financial promises, which include cutting at least $1.5 billion in annual costs in three years, or by 2011.
According to Reuters Loan Pricing Corp, InBev has received $54.8 billion in financing for the deal, including a $45 billion jumbo loan and a $9.8 billion loan bridging to an equity issue the company must get done within six months of the closing.
InBev postponed an issue in mid-October due to market volatility.
Analysts were concerned about the fate of the deal after a global credit crunch made loans harder to come by and caused a major realignment of the worldwide banking industry.
Anheuser-Busch InBev also has a $7 billion bridge loan for 12 months until it sells some assets.
In addition to breweries, Anheuser-Busch, based in St. Louis, Missouri, owns a packaging business and theme parks including SeaWorld and Busch Gardens.
Reuters