Anheuser-Busch plans to buy out Craft Brew Alliance for large premium

Anheuser-Busch InBev SA will continue the buying frenzy for craft beers by attempting to purchase the rest of publicly traded Craft Brew Alliance Inc. for $16.50 a share. Craft Brew Alliance closed Monday's trading session at $7.33 a share, but the stock shot up more than 120% in after-hours trading to more closely resemble to purchase price. Craft Brew Alliance is known for its Kona Brewing, Widmer Brothers and Redhook Brewery brands, among others. Anheuser-Busch, the maker of Budweiser and other mass-market beers, has moved heavily into craft beers in recent years, and previously made a distribution deal with Craft Brew Alliance. Part of that deal included an option to buy the remaining shares, but Anheuser-Busch allowed the deadline for that deal to pass without exercising the original option, instead paying a $20 million incentive payment. The large beer company already owned a stake of more than 31% in Craft Brew, according to FactSet, and will seek to buy the rest of the shares with cash.

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