Fraser & Neave closes Vinamilk deal

December 12, 2016 | 17:40

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F&N Beverages Manufacturing Sdn. Bhd. and F&N Dairy Investments Pte., Ltd., the two 100 per cent-owned subsidiaries of Fraser & Neave Ltd. (F&N) have completed the purchase of a total of 78.38 million shares, equalling a 5.4 per cent stake, in Vietnam Dairy Products Joint Stock Company (Vinamilk), according to newswire Cafef.vn.

The bought share volume is equal to 60 per cent of the shares put on sale.

Accordingly, the two companies spent VND11.3 trillion ($499.56 million) on buying the registered share volume at the initial offering price of VND144,000 ($6.33) apiece.

After the auction, F&N increased its holding in Vinamilk to 16.35 per cent, including the 13.65 and 2.7 per cent stakes of F&N Dairy Investments Pte., Ltd. and F&N Beverages Manufacturing Sdn. Bhd, respectively.

Thus, F&N completed its plans to extend holdings in Vinamilk, which is a part of the group’s strategy to expand presence in Southeast Asia and enhance the group’s competitive capacity against the two largest US soft drink giants in the region, PepsiCo Inc. and Coca-Cola Co.

Lee Meng Tat, F&N’s chief executive officer for non-alcoholic beverages, said that if Vinamilk raises its foreign ownership limit, F&N will intensify efforts to acquire a sufficient shareholding.

F&N is among the top three soft drinks players in its home country, Singapore, as well as in Thailand and Malaysia, according to Euromonitor International. However, it is not ranked in the top five in Vietnam, Indonesia, and the Philippines, where the company is looking to grow.

At the closing date of the transaction of December 12, Vinamilk shares stood at VND133,700 ($5.93) apiece, 7 per cent lower than the selling price at the auction.

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