Combination Creates a New Challenger in the Beverage Industry
Keurig Dr Pepper (NYSE: KDP) today announced the successful completion
of the merger between Keurig Green Mountain and Dr Pepper Snapple Group.
The transaction creates the seventh-largest company in the U.S. food and
beverage sector and third-largest beverage company in North America,
with annual revenues of approximately $11 billion.
Commenting on the announcement, Keurig Dr Pepper CEO Bob Gamgort stated,
“The combination of these two great companies creates the scale,
portfolio and selling and distribution capabilities to compete
differently in the beverage industry. With a large stable of iconic
brands and the leading single-serve coffee brewing system on the market,
KDP has the ability to satisfy any beverage need or consumption
occasion—hot or cold, at work or at play, at home or on the go—and the
capability to get our brands to consumers virtually anytime and anywhere
they purchase beverages. I am honored to lead this great team and
excited that together we will challenge this industry in a new way.”
Shares in Keurig Dr Pepper will begin trading on the New York Stock
Exchange tomorrow, July 10, 2018, under the ticker symbol KDP.
As previously announced, under the terms of the merger agreement, Dr
Pepper Snapple shareholders will receive a special cash dividend of
$103.75 per share, payable in U.S. dollars, on July 10, 2018, to
shareholders of record on the July 6, 2018 record date, the trading day
immediately prior to the closing date. Through July 9, 2018, the shares
have traded with "due-bills," representing an assignment of the right to
receive the special cash dividend. On July 10, 2018, the shares will
begin trading ex-dividend.
KDP will maintain dual headquarters in Burlington, MA, and Plano, TX.
ABOUT KEURIG DR PEPPER
Keurig Dr Pepper (KDP) is a leading
coffee and beverage company in North America, with annual revenue in
excess of $11 billion. KDP holds leadership positions in soft drinks,
specialty coffee and tea, water, juice and juice drinks and mixers, and
markets the #1 single serve coffee brewing system in the U.S. The
Company maintains an unrivaled distribution system that enables its
portfolio of more than 125 owned, licensed and partner brands to be
available nearly everywhere people shop and consume beverages. With a
wide range of hot and cold beverages that meet virtually any consumer
need, KDP key brands include Keurig®, Dr Pepper®,
Green Mountain Coffee Roasters®, Canada Dry®,
Snapple®, Bai®, Mott’s® and The
Original Donut Shop®. The Company employs more than 25,000
employees and operates more than 120 offices, manufacturing plants,
warehouses and distribution centers across North America.
FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS
Certain statements contained
herein are “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of applicable
securities laws and regulations. These forward-looking statements can
generally be identified by the use of words such as “anticipate,”
“expect,” “believe,” “could,” “estimate,” “feel,” “forecast,” “intend,”
“may,” “plan,” “potential,” “project,” “should,” “will,” “would,” and
similar words, phrases or expressions and variations or negatives of
these words, although not all forward-looking statements contain these
identifying words. Forward-looking statements by their nature address
matters that are, to different degrees, uncertain, such as statements
regarding the estimated or anticipated future results of the combined
company following the combination of Keurig Green Mountain, Inc. (“KGM”)
and Dr Pepper Snapple Group, Inc. (“DPSG” and such combination, the
“transaction”), the anticipated benefits of the transaction, including
estimated synergies and cost savings, and other statements that are not
historical facts. These statements are based on the current expectations
of our management and are not predictions of actual performance.
These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and
uncertainties regarding the combined company’s business and the
combination and actual results may differ materially. These risks and
uncertainties include, but are not limited to: (i) the impact the
significant additional debt incurred in connection with the transaction
may have on our ability to operate our combined business, (ii) risks
relating to the integration of the KGM and DPS operations, products and
employees into the combined company and assumption of certain potential
liabilities of KGM and the possibility that the anticipated synergies
and other benefits of the combination, including cost savings, will not
be realized or will not be realized within the expected timeframe, (iii)
our status as a “controlled company” within the meanings of the New York
Stock Exchange, including our reliance on exemptions from certain
corporate governance standards and the significantly less influence that
our pre- transaction holders now have on our company, and (iv) risks
relating to the combined businesses and the industries in which our
combined company operates. These risks and uncertainties, as well as
other risks and uncertainties, are more fully discussed in our
definitive proxy statement filed with the SEC on May 29, 2018, our
Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on July 9, 2018, and our
subsequent filings with the SEC. While the lists of risk factors
presented here and in our public filings are considered representative,
no such list should be considered to be a complete statement of all
potential risks and uncertainties. Any forward-looking statement made
herein speaks only as of the date of this document. We are under no
obligation to, and expressly disclaim any obligation to, update or alter
any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information,
subsequent events or otherwise, except as required by applicable laws or
regulations.
