After months of courtship, German drug and farm chemical maker Bayer AG has finally reached an agreement to buy U.S. seed and weedkiller company Monsanto, in a deal that is valued at $66 billion and which will keep the merged entity’s seed business in Monsanto’s home base of St. Louis.
In a statement, Bayer said Wednesday it is paying Monsanto shareholders $128 per share — in cash. That represents a 44 percent premium over Monsanto’s closing price on May 9, the day before a proposed deal was announced. The $66 billion figure put on the deal by Bayer includes net debt; the equity value is $57 billion, according to slides for an investment analyst conference call.
