(Bloomberg) -- China Mengniu Dairy Co. agreed to buy Bellamy’s Australia Ltd. for A$1.5 billion ($1 billion), offering a 59% premium for the infant formula-maker as it seeks to soak up supplies for the Chinese consumer.
The Hong Kong-listed firm, which markets and distributes dairy products in China, offered A$13.25 per share for Bellamy’s, compared with Friday’s closing price of A$8.32, according to a statement Monday. Bellamy’s board unanimously recommended the offer.
The target’s stock surged as much as 56% in early Sydney trading to A$12.97.
Mengniu’s Chief Executive Officer Lu Minfang said Bellamy’s Australian operations and supply chain were critical to his company. “Our sales growth ambitions for Bellamy’s in Australia, and the broader Asia-Pacific region, will see investment in the local dairy industry,” he said in the statement.
The deal, which is subject to approval from Australia’s Foreign Investment Review Board, would hand Mengniu one of Australia’s leading producers of organic baby food and formula. Shares in the Launceston, Tasmania-based company have fallen from a March 2018 peak of A$22.52, amid increased competition and delays in approval for a license from China’s State Administration for Market Regulation to sell organic formula in the nation.
The delay hurt the company’s full-year profit, which declined 36% to A$30.1 million, and Bellamy’s pushed its medium-term target of A$500 million annual revenue beyond fiscal 2021.
“Mengniu is a preeminent dairy company in China and an ideal partner for our business,” Bellamy’s Chief Executive Officer Andrew Cohen said in the statement. “It offers a strong platform for distribution and success in China, and a foundation for growth in the organic dairy and food industry in Australia.”
(Updates with share reaction in third paragraph.)