The German brewer, Holsten Brauerei, has said it is not aware of any takeover bid for the company following reports in German newspapers that a foreign investor had acquired a 14% stake in the company. Shares in the brewer rose by 10.6% to €24.4 on the back of the bid rumours.
“We have no indications of any such activity,” said Holsten spokesman, Udo Franke. Franke also said that the company was not in talks with any potential buyers.
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However, the German bank, Commerzbank, did confirm that it had sold a 14% stake which it owned indirectly in the brewer to an institutional investor. Reports further suggested that the buyer of the 14% was a go-between and would be selling the shares on to an international brewer in due course.
A host of major brewing groups, including Scottish & Newcastle, Interbrew, Heineken, Carlsberg and Anheuser-Busch, have all been mentioned as possible buyers for Holsten which has a 9% share of the German beer market. Some 37% of the brewer’s shares, with a value of €650m to €750m (US$695m to US$802m) are currently publicly traded.
