General Mills to sell North America Yogurt business for $2.1B, sees dilution

General Mills announced that it has entered into definitive agreements to sell its North American Yogurt business to Lactalis and Sodiaal, two French dairy companies, in cash transactions valued at an aggregate $2.1B. Following the completion of the transactions, the U.S. and Canadian businesses will operate independently, with Lactalis acquiring the U.S. business and Sodiaal acquiring the Canadian business. The proposed transactions are expected to close in calendar 2025, subject to receipt of requisite regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions. The divestitures encompass the U.S. and Canada operations of several yogurt brands including Yoplait, Liberte, Go-Gurt, Oui, Mountain High, and :ratio, as well as manufacturing facilities in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, Reed City, Michigan, and Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec. Collectively, the North American Yogurt business contributed approximately $1.5B to General Mills’ fiscal 2024 net sales. General Mills anticipates the combined transactions will be approximately 3% dilutive to adjusted earnings per share in the first 12 months after the close, excluding transaction costs and other one-time impacts. The company expects to use the net proceeds from the transactions for share repurchases. General Mills will provide additional details about the potential financial impact of the transactions when it reports first-quarter results on September 18.