Weekly

Amcor and Berry Global merge

20 November 2024

Amcor and Berry Global Group have entered into a definitive merger agreement, pursuant to which Amcor and Berry will combine in an all-stock transaction. Transaction aimed at creating a global leader in consumer and healthcare packaging.

Berry shareholders will receive a fixed exchange ratio of 7.25 Amcor shares for each Berry share held upon closing, resulting in Amcor and Berry shareholders owning approximately 63 and 37 percent of the combined company, respectively. The transaction has received unanimous approval from the boards of directors of both Amcor and Berry and values Berry’s common stock value is 73.59 USD per share.

The combination brings together two highly complementary businesses to create a global consumer packaging company with a broader flexible film and converted film offering for customers, a scaled containers and closures business and a unique global healthcare portfolio.

The combined company will have united innovation capabilities and scale and be uniquely positioned to accelerate growth, solve customers’ and consumers’ sustainability needs, unlock portfolio transformation and deliver significant value to both sets of shareholders

Amcor CEO Peter Konieczny said: ‘This combination delivers on our strategy to accelerate growth by putting the customer first, elevating the role of sustainability and orienting the portfolio toward faster growing, higher margin categories. We will have a more complete and more sustainable product offering, supported by stronger innovation capabilities, global scale and supply chain flexibility.

‘We will help global and local customers grow faster and operate more efficiently with a team of exceptional talent. As a result, this combination also drives a step change in annual free cash flow, earnings growth and value creation for our shareholders. I, and the Amcor team, look forward to joining with Berry to accelerate change and real impact for our customers and their consumers.’

Berry CEO Kevin Kwilinski added: ‘Over the past year, Berry has undergone a significant transformation, completing the spin-off of our HHNF business, enhancing our product mix and optimizing our portfolio. Our combination with Amcor is a logical next step in our company’s evolution, and it is a testament to our entire team that we’re well positioned to build on this momentum and deliver even more value to our shareholders. We expect to better serve customers through a comprehensive and innovative consumer packaging portfolio and a complementary geographic coverage. Importantly Berry and Amcor have aligned philosophies focused on safety, employee experience, sustainability, innovation, customer intimacy, and functional excellence. We will be better together, and I look forward to all we will achieve as a combined organization.’

Konieczny will serve as chief executive officer, Graeme Liebelt will serve as chairman and Stephen Sterrett will serve as deputy chairman of the combined company.

Amcor will maintain its primary listing on the NYSE and its secondary listing on the ASX. The combined entity will be named Amcor plc.

The combined company’s global head office will remain in Zurich, Switzerland, and it expects to maintain a significant presence in Evansville, Indiana.

Source: Labels & Labelling