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Danone said on Monday that Stonyfield had around $370 million in
turnover in 2016, and that the sale price represented a multiple
of around 20 times the 2016 earnings before interest, tax,
depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) for Stonyfield.
Danone shares were up 1 percent in mid-session trading, in line
with a similar rise on the CAC-40 index of French blue chips
stocks. <.FCHI>
"The sale price appears reasonable and we expect proceeds would
reduce leverage largely offsetting dilution from the disposal,"
Liberum analysts wrote in a research note.
"Danone remains on track to deliver 10 percent 5-year CAGR
(compound annual growth rate) driven in part by WhiteWave and
significant savings from the 1 billion euros Project Protein
efficiency program," they added.
Danone's 'Project Protein' savings program, unveiled earlier
this year, aims to cut costs by 1 billion euros over the next
three years.
Jefferies analysts added that the Stonyfield sale was "a decent
exit and the removal of a potential distraction for Danone."
Earlier this year, Danone had said it would sell Stonyfield as
part of an agreement with U.S. authorities to facilitate its
takeover of WhiteWave.
The deal is expected to be completed in the third quarter of
2017.
(Additional reporting by Sudip Kar-Gupta; Editing by Himani
Sarkar/Sudip Kar-Gupta)
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