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On the tobacco sector, for example, Ahrens shrugs off the litigation risk, which he thinks is mostly in the past, and points to worldwide demand for tobacco and, in the case of Altria (MO, the former Philip Morris), diversification into other businesses such as Kraft and Nabisco.
These were a few of the points Ahrens made in an investing chat presented Sept. 9 by BusinessWeek Online on America Online. He was responding to questions from the audience and from Jack Dierdorff and Karyn McCormack of BW Online. Following are edited excerpts from this chat. A full transcript is available on AOL at keyword: BW Talk. . . .
tobacco is one of the most misunderstood industries in America. Investors hear the word "tobacco" and assume it must be a bad investment. They don't realize the worldwide demand for tobacco and don't realize that the majority of litigation risk is in the past. Everyone knows tobacco is bad for you, and moving forward, tobacco's expected to win litigation, as they have done in recent times.
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Melbourne woman Rolah McCabe, who won a landmark case for compensation against a tobacco company, has lost her battle with lung cancer.
The 51-year-old grandmother from Cranbourne died on Saturday, according to newspaper death notices.
The Personal Health column on Aug. 27, "A Jubilant Barroom Toast: To Smoke-Free Air," makes clear that the rationale for the proposed smoking ban in bars and restaurants is the protection of the health of those who work in such establishments.
What about toll booth workers? How does breathing exhaust fumes all day compare to inhaling some cigarette smoke? Will we soon see proposals to abolish toll booths? I don't think so.
Toll collectors are apparently expendable for obvious reasons. It's difficult not to conclude that the real driving force for many of the antismoking zealots is puritanical moralism rather than the health of workers.
On December 11, 2000, Philip Morris Companies Inc. ("Philip Morris"), a Virginia corporation, completed the acquisition of Nabisco Holdings Corp. ("Nabisco"), a Delaware corporation, pursuant to the terms of the previously reported Agreement and Plan of Merger (the "Merger Agreement"), dated as of June 25, 2000, among Philip Morris, Nabisco and Strike Acquisition Corp. ("Strike"), a wholly owned subsidiary of Kraft Foods, Inc. ("Kraft"), an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Philip Morris, and the Voting and Indemnity Agreement (the "Voting Agreement"), dated as of June 25, 2000, among Philip Morris, Nabisco and Nabisco Group Holdings Corp.
Effective December 11, 2000, Strike merged with and into Nabisco, with Nabisco surviving the merger as a wholly owned subsidiary of Kraft. Each outstanding share of Nabisco stock was converted into the right to receive $55 in cash.
The total amount of funds required for the purchase of Nabisco was $15.2 billion
Campbell Soup Co., the world's largest soup maker, is close to naming a new chief executive after a nine-month search that has frustrated investors, the Wall Street Journal interactive reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
Douglas R. Conant, president Philip Morris Inc.'s Nabisco Foods Co, the maker of Oreo cookies and Ritz crackers, is the leading contender, the people told the paper. Conant, 49, would succeed David W. Johnson, Campbell's former chief executive officer, who returned in March on an interim basis after the resignation of Dale F. Morrison, the WSJ said. . .
He may be reluctant to resign from Nabisco before Dec. 31 as a faster exit could cost him his annual bonus, the paper said.
Philip Morris will merge Nabisco with its Kraft Foods unit.
Hershey Foods Corp. the top U.S. chocolate maker, on Friday said it completed the $135 million acquisition of Nabisco Holdings Corp.'s breath freshener mints and gum operations.
The deal puts Nabisco's popular Ice Breakers and Breath Savers mint brands in Hershey's basket, and also adds the Ice Breakers, Care*free, Stick*free, Bubble Yum and Fruit Stripe gum brands to Hershey's Rain Blo and Super Bubble brands.
As part of the deal, Hershey also bought a gum-manufacturing plant in Las Piedras, Puerto Rico.
The transaction, originally announced on Nov. 6, depended on Philip Morris Cos. Inc.'s purchase of Nabisco Holdings, which was completed on Monday.
Fitch has assigned indicative ratings to Kraft Holdings (Kraft) as follows: senior unsecured debt, `A', and commercial paper, `F1'. Kraft is a newly created holding company currently wholly owned by Philip Morris Companies Inc. (Philip Morris). At the same time, Fitch upgraded Nabisco, Inc.'s senior unsecured and bank credit facility ratings to `A' and commercial paper rating to `F1'. These actions follow the consummation of the acquisition of Nabisco Holdings Corp. by Philip Morris and Kraft Foods, Inc., a unit of Kraft. The Rating Outlooks for Philip Morris, Kraft, and Nabisco are Stable.
``This is a great transaction for RJR and our shareholders,'' said Andrew J. Schindler, chairman and chief executive officer of R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Holdings. ``We have a central focus on maximizing shareholder value. This acquisition presents a meaningful opportunity for us to continue to meet that objective.''
Philip Morris Cos Inc. completed its purchase of cookie and cracker maker Nabisco Holdings Corp. on Monday, while R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Holdings Inc. bought Nabisco's former parent, giving it $1.5 billion in cash, the companies said.
Philip Morris' Kraft Foods Inc. unit, which is already the world's second-largest food company after Swiss conglomerate Nestle, can now stock its cupboard with the Nabisco Holdings food line of Oreo cookies, Ritz crackers, Lifesavers candies and Grey Poupon mustard.
Philip Morris, also the world's largest cigarette company, paid about $14.58 billion plus the assumption of about $4 billion in debt. The combined Kraft-Nabisco creates a packaged food giant with annual revenues of $35 billion.
In a press release Monday, R.J. Reynolds said the primary asset of Nabisco Group Holdings after the sale of Nabisco Holdings Corp. is about $11.7 billion cash. R.J. Reynolds expects proceeds to be about $1.5 billion, after the payment to Nabisco Group shareholders and costs related to the transaction are made.
A First Call/Thomson Financial survey of eight analysts produced a mean earings estimate of $3.90 a share for R.J. Reynold's fiscal 2000.
Philip Morris Cos., the world's largest tobacco company, said it completed its $18.9 billion acquisition of Nabisco Holdings Corp., the maker of Oreo cookies and Ritz crackers.
The combination of Nabisco Holdings with Philip Morris' Kraft Foods unit creates the world's second-biggest food maker behind Switzerland's Nestle SA, analysts said.
Philip Morris Companies Inc. announced today that it closed on its acquisition of Nabisco Holdings Corp. for $55.00 per share in cash and the assumption of approximately $4.0 billion of Nabisco's debt, for a purchase price of $18.9 billion.
With 1999 operating revenues of more than $78 billion, the Philip Morris family of companies is the world's largest producer and marketer of consumer packaged goods. Philip Morris Companies Inc. has five principal operating companies: Kraft Foods, Inc. (comprising Kraft Foods North America and Kraft Foods International), Miller Brewing Company, Philip Morris International Inc., Philip Morris Incorporated (PM USA) and Philip Morris Capital Corporation.
R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Holdings Inc. said on Monday it has purchased Nabisco Group Holdings Corp., the former parent of Nabisco Holdings Corp., for $30 a share, or about $9.8 billion.
R.J. Reynolds made its announcement after Philip Morris Cos. Inc. said it completed its purchase of Nabisco Holdings Corp.(NA.N), the maker of Oreo cookies and Ritz crackers. The primary asset of Nabisco Group Holdings after the Philip Morris purchase of Nabisco Holdings is a cash shell of about $11.7 billion.
``Philip Morris is subjecting Nabisco to a Boycott that is a serious and growing liability to its Kraft Foods division,'' says Infact Executive Director Kathryn Mulvey. Internal documents made public through US litigation show that the corporation knew in the early 1990's that associating Kraft with Philip Morris would harm public perception of Kraft. ``The tobacco giant's willingness to risk Kraft's-and now Nabisco's-image shows how desperate they are to cover up youth-oriented tactics like the Marlboro Man and buy credibility as countries come together to negotiate a global tobacco control treaty,'' continues Mulvey. . .
The Federal Trade Commission is now accepting public comment on its conditional approval of the sale. In a letter sent today to the FTC, Mulvey argued that consumer interest in Philip Morris's acquisition is broader than questions of competition within the food industry. ``Philip Morris is, first and foremost, the global leader in the deadly tobacco business. If this plan is completed, Nabisco will become a pawn of the Marlboro Man. Support for the Kraft Boycott shows that growing numbers of consumers do not want their food purchases to advance the spread of the tobacco epidemic by enhancing the corporate image and political clout of tobacco transnationals led by Philip Morris,'' wrote Mulvey.