On Friday, the board of Anheuser-Busch Cos. Inc. (NYSE: BUD) met and discussed the $46.3 billion unsolicited bid from rival InBev NV. However, there was nothing announced to its eager shareholders.

But, hey, why speed things up? Might as well keep InBev guessing, right?

And, there's much for the rumor mill to chomp on. For example, Carlos Fernandez said he has resigned from Anheuser's board. He is the CEO of Grupo Modelo, which is half-owned by Anheuser.

One possibility is that Anheuser will buy the rest of Grupo, making it tougher for InBev to pull off its buyout. So, does the resignation mean that Anheuser and Grupo are talking about such an arrangement?

It's really tough to tell. Perhaps Grupo is actually talking to InBev? After all, it looks like Grupo wants to remain independent.

Yet, all this stuff seems more of a sideshow. The fact remains that Anheuser can't ignore InBev and is under lots of pressure to sell out (especially in light of its sluggish operating performance over the past few years).

Actually, Adolphus A. Busch IV sent a letter to Anheuser's board urging negotiation with InBev to get a deal done. He's the uncle of the CEO, August A. Busch IV.

Finally, there is another interesting dynamic: Warren Buffett. His company, Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK.A), owns 5% of Anheuser's shares. No doubt, it should be interesting to get his views on the matter.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including The Complete M&A Handbook and The Edgar Online Guide to Decoding Financial Statements. He also operates MergerBook.com.

Radio silence at Anheuser-Busch originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 21 Jun 2008 15:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Overnight, Belgian newspaper De Standaard wrote that, based on its sources, Warren Buffett backs an InBev buy-out of Anheuser-Busch (NYSE: BUD).

Is it any wonder? BUD can try to greatly improve its earnings on its own. With 50% of the US beer market, that may be hard. It can hope that buying the piece of Mexican brewer Grupo Modelo that it does not already own will help profits. More likely it will increase debt or dilute current shareholder.

BUD's problem is that its shares may never see $60 again. They have risen above that on the InBev offer. A look at the company's long-term shock chart shows it has never been this high before.

If Buffett makes his backing of the InBev offer public, most of the BUD investors are likely to follow. He will have done all of them a favor.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.

Buffett appears ready to back InBev buy-out of BUD originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 17 Jun 2008 03:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

There aren't many defenses to InBev's mega $46.3 billion unsolicited bid for Anheuser-Busch (NYSE: BUD).

Though, there are is one interesting option: the "scorched earth" approach. Essentially, this is when a company takes a transformative move -- such as a huge dividend or a major acquisition -- to make itself unattractive. Yes, it's brutal and shareholders don't like it. But, it does happen.

In the case of Anheuser, it may decide to make a bid for Grupo Modelo, which is the largest beer company in Mexico (and controls the Corona brand). In fact, Grupo Modelo Anheuser already owns half the company's shares and it looks like talks are already in progress (according to a report in the Wall Street Journal, which is a paid publication).

The problem: basically, Grupo Modelo might not want to sell out. If anything, the company may see the InBev's mega deal as a way to buy back the 50% stake from Anheuser.

But, interestingly enough, Warren Buffett may be the ultimate power broker. After all, his firm, Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK.A) owns 5% of Anheuser. And, according to a report in the Guardian, it looks like Buffett is going to meet with August Busch IV, who is the CEO of Anheuser.

Continue reading Warren Buffett: The decider on InBev's bid for Anheuser-Busch?

Warren Buffett: The decider on InBev's bid for Anheuser-Busch? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 15 Jun 2008 15:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Anheuser-Busch (NYSE: BUD) wants to stay out of the hands of potential acquirer InBev. It seems willing to go to great lengths to do that. Shareholders of the brewery may get crushed in the process.

To get itself out of its jam, Anheuser-Busch has approached Grupo Modelo, the big Mexican brewer, about a merger. The American company already owns about half of the Modelo. According to The Wall Street Journal, "Acquiring the rest of the Mexican brewer could make the combined company too expensive for InBev."

A Modelo deal may help the Busch family keep their jobs, but the shareholders will almost certainly get hammered.

The InBev offer for the company is $65. Looking at a chart of Anheuser-Busch shares going back to 1983, the stock has never traded anywhere near that level.

In some ways the Anheuser-Busch move looks like Yahoo!'s (NASDAQ: YHOO) rejection of the Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) buy-out offer. Shareholders are never going to get this kind of premium again. The "founders" get to stay in charge.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.

Anheuser-Busch (BUD) tries to save itself with merger, a Yahoo!-like move originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 13 Jun 2008 08:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Anheuser-Busch (BUD) forecasts heady sales originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 10 Sep 2007 10:53:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Anheuser-Busch Cos.

Continue reading Anheuser-Busch misses earnings estimate

Anheuser-Busch misses earnings estimate originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 26 Apr 2007 09:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.