Natural Products February 15, 2024 2:08:46 pm

Sovos acquisition by Campbell Soup expected to be finalized in March

Louisville-based Sovos, which moved to Colorado from California several years ago, controls Rao’s pasta sauce, Noosa Yoghurt and Michael Angelo’s frozen entrées. Courtesy Sovos

By Lucas High

LOUISVILLE — The acquisition of food-umbrella company Sovos Brands Inc. (Nasdaq: SOVO) by soup giant Campbell Soup Co. (NYSE: CPB) is expected to be official by mid-March, as the companies recently finished providing additional information on the deal as requested last year by the Federal Trade Commission.

“The certification of substantial compliance (with the FTC’s inquiry) triggers the start of a 30-day waiting period which is expected to expire on March 11, 2024, after which the sale can be finalized,” Campbell said this week in a disclosure to regulators and investors. “Subject to the satisfaction or waiver of customary closing conditions, the companies expect to complete the transaction within days of the March 11, 2024 expiration date.”

Louisville-based Sovos, which moved to Colorado from California several years ago and controls Rao’s pasta sauce, Noosa Yoghurt and Michael Angelo’s frozen entrées, will be absorbed in a $2.7 billion deal that will fold Sovos’ brands into Campbell’s meals and beverages division.

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“We are delighted to reach this critically important milestone in the completion of the acquisition,” Sovos founder and CEO Todd Lachman said in a prepared statement. “We remain highly confident in Campbell’s ability to continue bringing our products to more households and further building on our track record as one of the fastest growing food companies of scale in the United States.”

In late September 2023, a Sovos investor sued the companies in Boulder County District Court, accusing Campbell’s, Sovos, its executives, directors and financial advisers with “dissemination of false and/or misleading statements to Sovos investors,” which set the stage for Campbell’s to pay less per Sovos share than the company is worth. The plaintiff voluntarily dismissed the case soon after it was filed.

Sovos plans to report its fourth quarter 2023 and full-year 2023 financial results after markets close on Feb. 28. “Due to the pending merger with Campbell Soup Co., Sovos Brands will not host a conference call to discuss the results,” the company said this week.

The acquisition of food-umbrella company Sovos Brands Inc. by soup giant Campbell Soup Co. is expected to be official by mid-March, as the companies recently finished providing additional information on the deal as requested last year by the Federal Trade Commission.