Amcor, Berry Global to merge, creating packaging giant

Berry shareholders will receive a fixed exchange ratio of 7.25 Amcor shares for each Berry share held upon closing, resulting in Amcor and Berry shareholders owning approximately 63 per cent and 37 per cent of the combined company, respectively. The transaction has received unanimous approval of the boards of directors of both Amcor and Berry and values Berry’s common stock at $73.59 per share.

The combination brings together two highly complementary businesses to create a global leader in consumer packaging solutions, with a broader flexible film and converted film offering for customers, a scaled containers and closures business and a unique global healthcare portfolio. The combined company will have unprecedented innovation capabilities and scale, and be uniquely positioned to accelerate growth, solve customers’ and consumers’ sustainability needs, unlock portfolio transformation and deliver significant value to both sets of shareholders, the company said in a press release.

“This combination delivers on our strategy to accelerate growth by putting the customer first, elevating the role of sustainability and orienting the portfolio toward faster growing, higher margin categories. We will have a more complete and more sustainable product offering, supported by stronger innovation capabilities, global scale and supply chain flexibility. We will help global and local customers grow faster and operate more efficiently with a team of exceptional talent. As a result, this combination also drives a step change in annual free cash flow, earnings growth and value creation for our shareholders. I, and the Amcor team, look forward to joining with Berry to accelerate change and real impact for our customers and their consumers,” Amcor CEO, Peter Konieczny, said.

“Over the past year, Berry has undergone a significant transformation, completing the spin-off of our HHNF business, enhancing our product mix and optimising our portfolio. Our combination with Amcor is a logical next step in our company’s evolution, and it is a testament to our entire team that we’re well positioned to build on this momentum and deliver even more value to our shareholders. We expect to better serve customers through a comprehensive and innovative consumer packaging portfolio and a complementary geographic coverage. Importantly Berry and Amcor have aligned philosophies focused on safety, employee experience, sustainability, innovation, customer intimacy, and functional excellence. We will be better together, and I look forward to all we will achieve as a combined organisation,” Berry CEO, Kevin Kwilinski, said.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (RR)