Diageo share price lifted by billionaire Brazilian bid talk from Jorge Paulo Lemann and 3G Capital
Shares in Diageo have shot up today following reports the drinks giant is the target of a takeover bid by Brazil's richest man.
Jorge Paulo Lemann and his private equity partners at 3G Capital are said to be mulling a buyout, according to local media reports.
London-listed shares in the maker of Smirnoff vodka and Johnnie Walker whisky closed more than six per cent up in Monday's trading, making the biggest gains on the FTSE 100 which edged lower at close.
Diageo's New York-listed shares made their biggest gains in nearly seven years on Friday, rising 8.7 per cent and closing at $118 per share after the reports first surfaced. It still retained some of those gains on Monday, trading at just over $114 per share at pixel time.
Lemann's firm has close ties with investment supremo Warren Buffett and Berkshire Hathaway. The two firms own Heniz and snapped up fellow US food company Kraft together earlier this year.
Lemann and 3G have previous form when it comes to drinks companies. It formerly had a controlling stake in South America's largest brewer, which then merged with Belgium's Interbrew to form InBev. That company later combined with Anheuser-Busch to create AB InBev.
