Novozymes and Chr. Hansen to merge

Novozymes plans to acquire fellow Danish firm Chr. Hansen in an all-stock deal worth $11.3 billion. Novozymes produces enzymes for a wide variety of industries, while Chr. Hansen develops natural ingredients for food, drugs, and agriculture. Novozymes CEO Ester Baiget will lead the combined firm, which is expected to have annual sales of about $3.7 billion. The company will initially operate as Novozymes but will develop a new name and brand. It will be split into two divisions, one focused on food and human health and the other on fighting climate change and reducing chemical use. Novo Holdings is the largest shareholder of both companies and will retain a roughly 22% stake in the new firm. In a research note, stock analysts at Jefferies called the deal expensive, warning that the firms could be overestimating the amount of money that merging will save and how much sales will increase by combining. The deal values Chr. Hansen shares about 49% higher than their price before it was announced.