Pernod Pays $9 Billion for Absolut

Pernod Ricard won the long battle to acquire Absolut for a whopping $8.9 billion (5.63 euros), beating analyst favorite Fortune Brands (who we also predicted would win). Pernod is now a close second behind Diageo as the world’s largest spirits company. After the deal closes, Pernod’s annual volume sales will total 91 million 9-litre cases of spirits, while Diageo has 93 million. In the U.S., Pernod’s position increases from number 4 to number 2 with a market share of close