If Beer Merger Happens, Would Millercoors Leave Chicago?

Anheuser-Busch InBev’s potential takeover of SABMiller — joining the world’s two largest beer companies — would create a $275 billion brewing behemoth, but it could also spell the end of MillerCoors’ stay in Chicago.

Rumored for months, AB InBev’s unsolicited pitch was confirmed publicly Wednesday by both companies. AB InBev has until Oct. 14 to make an offer and, from there, the complex deal could take a year or more to close.

Shares of AB InBev rose 6.84 percent to close at $115.43 a share Wednesday, while shares of Molson Coors closed at $82.98, up 14.23 percent from Tuesday’s close.
For a deal of such magnitude to clear U.S. antitrust law, AB InBev likely would need to divest Chicago-based MillerCoors, a joint venture between SABMiller and Molson Coors established in 2008, said Philip Gorham, a Morningstar senior equity analyst.

The most likely suitor in such a deal would be Molson Coors, which already owns 42 percent of MillerCoors. That leaves an uncertain future for MillerCoors and its 450 employees. The company moved into 250 S. Wacker Drive, on the banks of the Chicago River, with the help of more than $20 million in city and state economic incentives… CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL STORY AT CHICAGO TRIBUNE