SABMiller snubs fellow giant’s bigger bid

LONDON — Anheuser-Busch InBev increased the pressure on SABMiller on Wednesday to agree to a takeover, saying it was now willing to pay about $104 billion for its rival.

The revised offer came after Anheuser-Busch InBev said that SABMiller’s board of directors had rejected two other proposals that had not previously been publicized. SABMiller said Wednesday that the prior approaches had undervalued the company.

SABMiller’s board of directors, excluding directors nominated by Altria Group, its largest shareholder, also quickly rejected the latest proposal, saying in a news release that the revised bid “still very substantially undervalues SABMiller, its unique and unmatched footprint, and its stand-alone prospects.”

Altria, the tobacco giant, said Wednesday that it would be willing to support the latest approach, which includes an option for Altria and other investors to accept a portion of the offer in restricted shares instead of cash.

Under the terms of the latest bid, Anheuser-Busch InBev said it would be willing to pay about $63.97 a share in cash for SABMiller, a 16 percent premium to the closing price in London on Tuesday. That is also a 44 percent premium to the closing price in mid-September, before Anheuser-Busch InBev confirmed it had approached SABMiller about a possible combination.

Anheuser-Busch InBev said last month that it had approached SABMiller about a takeover and that it had offered in two written, private proposals to pay about $42.74 a share and later about $45 a share in cash. The $45-ashare proposal also included an option for investors to accept a portion in unlisted shares, SABMiller said.