Monsanto to raise $4 bln for seed co acquisitions
Wednesday November 11, 5:17 pm Eastern Time
ST. LOUIS, Nov 11 (Reuters) - Life sciences company Monsanto Co. (NYSE:MTC - news) said Wednesday it would pay for recent seed company acquisitions with new issues of debt and equity, the sale of some businesses and a restructuring that will cut as many as 2,500, or about 9 percent, of its global workforce.
The company said it would raise up to $4 billion to fund the acquisitions and that 700 to 1,000 jobs would be cut as part of the restructuring, with another 1,300 to 1,500 jobs taken off the Monsanto
payroll through business divestitures.
The company said in a statement that it would issue about $1 billion of common stock, $500 million of adjustable conversion-rate equity security units (ACES) and $2.5 billion of long term unsecured debt. In addition, Monsanto said it expected to raise at least $1 billion from business divestitures.
It said the 700 to 1,000 job cuts would be effective in the first quarter of 1999 and that ''a number'' of them would be at executive levels.
The restructuring plan is expected to reduce administrative costs by roughly 20 percent in 1999 compared with 1998 and the company said it expected to take fourth quarter restructuring and special charges of $400 million to $600 million on a pretax basis.
Monsanto announced several seed company acquisitions earlier this year, including plans to purchase DeKalb Genetics Corp. (NYSE:DKB - news) and Delta and Pine Land Co. (NYSE:DLP - news). The company's planned merger with pharmaceutical firm American Home Products Corp.
(NYSE:AHP - news) fell through in October. Monsanto shares ended Wednesday at $38.69 on the New York Stock Exchange.
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