The board of Brown-Forman, the company known for producing Jack Daniel’s whiskey, announced Sunday that it had received an unsolicited buyout proposal from fellow spirits company Sazerac — and determined the offer was “not actionable.”
Brown-Forman declined to reveal the dollar amount attached to Sazerac’s latest proposal.
Wolf Pen Branch, LP, which holds a majority of Brown-Forman’s Class A shares, also weighed in, saying it remains confident in the company’s portfolio of brands. The shareholder group added that Sazerac’s proposal does not match its vision for Brown-Forman’s direction going forward.
Sazerac had not responded to requests for comment as of Sunday evening.
Reuters had previously reported in May that Brown-Forman turned down a cash offer of $32 per share from Sazerac — a bid that would have placed the company’s total value at approximately $15 billion.
Sazerac entered the picture as a potential buyer after Brown-Forman and Pernod Ricard walked away from their own merger talks in late April, unable to reach terms both sides could agree on.
Sazerac is a privately held company controlled by the Goldring family. The company’s portfolio includes more than 500 brands, among them Buffalo Trace bourbon and Fireball cinnamon whisky.
