The big brewer behind Budweiser announced plans to raise $9.8B in a Hong Kong IPO, valuing the Anheuser-Busch InBev’s Asia-Pacific business at $64B — or about the value of Heineken.
Move over, Uber… AB InBev is THIRSTY
At $9.8B, the public offering would be the biggest IPO of the year — and also the largest IPO for a food or drink company in history.
AB Inbev’s Asia-Pacific unit — which includes Budweiser, Stella Artois, and Corona — accounts for 18% of the company’s overall sales. Last year, the unit’s revenue rose 8.6% to $8.46B.
But are Asian markets really THAT thirsty for Bud’s suds?
Budweiser is the 3rd-largest beer brand in China (although it also owns the Chinese beer company Harbin, which is the 5th best-selling brand).
But, much like in America and other Western countries, per capita consumption of beer in China has declined slightly in recent years — raising questions about this sky-high Budweiser forecast.
