Campbell Soup Co plans to buy Bolthouse Farms for $1.55 billion in cash, adding high-end juices, salad dressings and baby carrots to its portfolio of soups, juices and cookies.
The deal is the latest example of how packaged food and beverage companies are trying to make their products healthier. PepsiCo said on Monday it would start selling yogurt in the United States this summer through a joint venture.
Campbell said on Monday it would fund the Bolthouse deal through a combination of short- and long-term debt. It is expected to close late this summer.
Campbell expects the acquisition to add 5 cents to 7 cents per share to its adjusted earnings in fiscal 2013.
For fiscal 2012, which will end this summer, the company said it expects sales to be near the low end of its forecast range of flat to up 2 percent. It expects earnings-per-share to decline near the upper end of its forecast for a drop of 5 to 7 percent.
Campbell was advised by Morgan Stanley. Bolthouse, owned by private equity firm Madison Dearborn Partners, was advised by Credit Suisse.
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