New York, September 14, 2016 -- Moody's Investors Service placed the ratings of Monsanto Company (A3 senior unsecured rating and Prime-2 commercial paper rating) under review for downgrade following the announcement that it has agreed to be acquired by Bayer AG (A3 on review for Downgrade) in a transaction valued at $66 billion ($57 billion in cash - $128/share - and $9 billion in Monsanto's balance sheet debt). This represents an 18.6x multiple on Monsanto's trailing EBITDA. Bayer plans to raise $19 billion with the issuance of mandatory convertible bonds and through a rights issue to limit the increase in its leverage. The transaction has been approved by the Boards of both companies and is subject to customary closing conditions, including receipt of regulatory approvals and approval by the shareholders of both companies. The companies expect the transaction to be completed by the end of 2017.

Vollständigen Artikel bei Moodys lesen