Donughts and coffee go together like peanut butter and jelly, so it should come as little surprise that JAB Holding Company, the German firm that has been buying coffee companies left and right, has purchased Krispy Kreme Doughnuts in a move to expand its ever-growing coffee empire.
Though doughnuts and coffee may go hand-in-hand, JAB may very well be just as interested in Krispy Kreme's coffee as its doughnuts. At the very least, it may have taken notice of the doughnut brand's efforts to focus more on its coffee and coffee-based products as of late. Last year, CEO Tony Thompson stated that he wanted to increase coffee sales which only made up 5 percent of sales as of December.
JAB will purchase Krispy Kreme for $21 a share, or about $1.35 billion, representing a premium of more than 25 percent from Friday's closing price. As part of the deal, which is expected to close in the third quarter, Krispy Kreme will remain independently operated from its headquarters in Winston-Salem, N.C., and will no longer trade on the public markets.
"This transaction puts us in the best possible position to continue to spread that joy to a growing number of people around the world while delivering significant value to Krispy Kreme shareholders," Krispy Kreme Chairman Jim Morgan said in a statement.
With the deal, JAB Holding Company will add Krispy Kreme Doughnuts to its trove of coffee-oriented businesses, including Peet's Coffee & Tea, Stumptown Coffee Roasters, Caribou Coffee and Keurig Green Mountain.
"We are thrilled to have such an iconic brand as Krispy Kreme joining the JAB portfolio," Peter Harf, senior partner at JAB, said in the statement. "This is yet another example of our commitment to investing in extraordinary brands with significant growth prospects."
JAB may be working on an expanding its coffee empire, but it has dabbled in may other markets outside of it as well. It owns a stake in the consumer products company Reckitt Benckiser and has purchased brands such as cosmetics maker Coty and women's shoemaker Jimmy Choo.
Wells Fargo provided financial advice to Krispy Kreme, while Barclays and BDT & Company advised JAB.
Click here to see the full press release.
