e425
Filed by Diamond Foods, Inc.
Pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended,
and deemed filed pursuant to Rule 14a-12
under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended
Subject Company: The Procter & Gamble Company
Commission File No: 001-00434
The following letter was sent to growers of Diamond Foods, Inc. on April 5, 2011.
Dear Diamond Grower,
We are pleased to announce that Diamond has agreed to acquire Pringles, the largest potato crisp
brand in the world, from Procter & Gamble. Pringles is a highly visible global brand with sales in
over 140 countries. This will more than triple the size of our snack business making our combined
company the number two player in the global snack market. The transaction is expected to close by
the end of 2011.
We believe that adding the profitable Pringles brand to our portfolio strengthens our financial
position substantially and increases our ability to invest in our entire business. Pringles will
allow us to continue to build and grow all of our brands through better efficiencies. It will
increase our scale in sales and distribution, provide a broader manufacturing and supply chain
platform and increase our geographic diversity with 49% of our sales to come from international
markets. We will now have access to key markets around the world including rapidly-growing markets
in Asia, Latin America and Central Europe.
We will continue to focus on creating new markets for walnuts as we have done so in the past with
Emerald and Diamond of California. Our recent additions of Sweet and Salty and Breakfast on the
Go, and further penetration in big box stores demonstrate our continued commitment to expanding our
nut business.
We are excited about the acquisition of Pringles and the benefits of more financial strength, an
international platform for growth and marketing/distribution efficiencies that can benefit and
create value for our entire business.
Best regards,
Michael J. Mendes
Chairman, President and CEO
Diamond Foods to Merge P&Gs Pringles Business into the
Company
Accretive combination makes Diamond the number two global player in
savory snack category
SAN
FRANCISCO, CA and CINCINNATI, OH (April 5, 2011)
Diamond Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ: DMND) and The
Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE: PG) today announced the signing of a definitive agreement to merge
the Pringles business (Pringles) into Diamond Foods in a transaction valued at $2.35 billion.
Pringles is an iconic, billion dollar snack brand with significant global manufacturing and supply
chain infrastructure, said Michael J. Mendes, Chairman, President and CEO of Diamond Foods. Our
plan is to build upon the brand equity Pringles has established in over 140 countries. This
strategic combination will create an independent, global leader in the snack industry with a focus
on quality and innovative products. Not only is this combination immediately accretive, it also
creates a platform that we believe will allow us to build shareholder value for years to come.
We are confident Diamond Foods will be an excellent new home for our Snacks employees, said Bob
McDonald, Chairman of the Board, President and Chief Executive Officer of P&G. This is also a
terrific deal for our shareholders maximizing value and minimizing earnings per share dilution.
Pringles® is the worlds largest potato crisp1 brand with sales in over 140 countries
and manufacturing operations in the U.S., Europe and Asia. The global, iconic brand has been built
over 45 years with a combination of proprietary products, unique package design and significant
advertising investment. Pringles will join Diamonds dynamic portfolio of brands, which includes
Diamond of California® and Emerald® nuts, Pop Secret® microwave popcorn and Kettle Brand® potato
chips, creating a premium snack-focused company with total revenues of approximately $2.4 billion.
The combination will more than triple the size of Diamonds snack business and:
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Increase scale in U.S. grocery, mass merchandise, drug and convenience channels to
gain greater merchandising and distribution influence; |
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Leverage Diamonds sales and distribution infrastructure through a more than |
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doubling
of snack sales in the U.S. and U.K., which are Pringles two largest markets; |
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Gain a broader global manufacturing and supply chain
platform, with access into key growth
markets around the world, including Asia, Latin America and
Central Europe; |
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Increase Diamonds geographic diversity, with international sales accounting for
approximately 49 percent of total revenues on a pro forma basis. |
Diamond Foods has a history of building, acquiring and energizing brands through product and
package innovation, efficient distribution and brand investment. The Companys total revenues have
doubled and earnings per share (EPS) have grown more than four-fold in the past five
years2.
Diamond of California brand has grown from a single product offering to a full line of culinary
nuts over the past decade. Today, Diamond is the category leader with a market share ten times
larger than the nearest branded competitor3. Emerald, which was launched in 2004, is
the fastest growing and second largest brand in the snack nut category. In 2008, the Company
acquired and successfully integrated Pop Secret microwave popcorn, and by revitalizing the brand,
Diamond has gained over 350 basis points of market share to 26 percent today3. In 2010,
the Company acquired Kettle Brand potato chips and has fueled double-digit organic growth in its
first year of ownership while investing in new products and operational infrastructure.
Financial Benefit for Diamond Foods Shareholders
Assuming Pringles had been owned for all of fiscal year 2011, the combined company would be
expected to deliver the following estimated financial results on a pro forma basis for fiscal year
2011:
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Net sales of approximately $2.4 billion; |
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Double-digit accretion to earnings per share (EPS), excluding merger and
integration costs; |
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Estimated earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization
(EBITDA), including $25 million in synergies, of approximately $398 million to
$410 million. |
For fiscal year 2012, Diamond anticipates strong growth in its core business, with EPS of
$2.85 to $2.98 per share on a standalone basis, an increase of 15 percent to 20 percent from the
midpoint of its fiscal 2011 guidance range, which represents a 30 percent increase over 2010 EPS.
Combined
results for Diamond plus the Pringles business for fiscal year 2012 will depend on the actual closing date of the transaction.
Assuming the transaction closes by the end of calendar 2011, seven months of Pringles performance
would be included in the following expected results:
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Fiscal 2012 total net sales are estimated to be approximately $1.8 billion; |
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Fiscal 2012 EPS, before costs associated with the transaction and |
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integration, are estimated to range from $3.00 to $3.10 per share, which reflects EPS
accretion of 12 to 15 cents per share |
The transaction is expected to significantly increase cash flow and accelerate the de-levering of
Diamonds balance sheet. Pro forma leverage at closing is projected to be below four times EBITDA,
and projected to drop below three times at the end of fiscal 2013. Cash flow after brand
investments and capital expenditures is expected to approach $200 million in the first full fiscal
year after closing the merger.
Transaction Details
P&G expects the separation to occur through a split-off transaction in which P&G shareholders can
elect to participate in an exchange offer to exchange P&G shares for shares of Diamond. Under
the terms of a split-merge agreement, P&G will establish a separate entity to hold the Pringles
business, which will be distributed to electing P&G shareholders in a tax-efficient transaction
with a simultaneous merger with Diamond. This Reverse Morris Trust transaction has been approved
by the boards of both companies. We expect to finalize the details of this transaction in the
coming months.
The value of the transaction is $2.35 billion, comprising $1.5 billion in Diamond common stock,
consisting of 29.1 million shares for approximately 57 percent of the outstanding shares of the
combined company, and the assumption of $850 million of Pringles debt. Diamonds existing
shareholders would continue to own approximately 43 percent of the combined company.
The parties have also agreed to a collar mechanism that would adjust the amount of debt assumed by
Diamond based upon Diamonds stock price during a trading period prior to the commencement of the
Exchange Offer.
Leadership, Approvals and Timing
The combined business will be managed by Diamonds executive team and board of directors, led by
Michael J. Mendes, Chairman, President and CEO. The companys headquarters will remain in San
Francisco, California.
The transaction is subject to approval by Diamond shareholders and the satisfaction of customary
closing conditions and regulatory approvals. The transaction is expected to be completed by the
end of calendar 2011.
Sources and notes: 1Defined by Euromonitor as extruded snacks; 2Calculated
using 2006 as base and mid-point of Diamonds guidance ranges for 2011; 3Nielsen U.S.
Grocery 52 weeks ended February 19, 2011.
Note regarding forward-looking statements
This release contains forward-looking statements as defined by the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995, including projections of Diamonds and the combined companys results and the
expected benefits of the transaction. Forward-looking statements necessarily depend on
assumptions, data or methods that may be incorrect or imprecise and are subject to risks and
uncertainties. Actual results could differ materially from projections made in this release. Some
factors that could cause actual results to differ from our expectations include the timing of
closing the transaction and the possibility that the transaction is not consummated, risks of
integrating acquired businesses and entering markets in which we have limited experience,
availability and pricing of raw materials, impact of additional indebtedness, loss of key
suppliers, customers or employees, and an increase in competition. A more extensive list of
factors that could materially affect our results can be found in Diamonds periodic filings with
the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). They are available publicly and on request from
Diamonds Investor Relations department.
For all items which relate to P&G and/or the combined business, all statements, other than statements of historical
fact included in this release, are forward-looking statements, as that term is defined in the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements are based on financial data, market assumptions and business plans
available only as of the time the statements are made, which may become out of date or incomplete. We assume no
obligation to update any forward-looking statement as a result of new information, future events or other factors.
Forward-looking statements are inherently uncertain, and investors must recognize that events could differ
significantly from our expectations. In addition to the risks and uncertainties noted in this release or presentation,
there are certain factors that could cause actual results for any quarter or annual period to differ materially from
those anticipated by some of the statements made. These include: (1) the ability to achieve business plans, including
growing existing sales and volume profitably despite high levels of competitive activity and an increasing volatile
economic environment, especially with respect to the product categories and geographical markets (including
developing markets) in which the Company has chosen to focus; (2) the ability to successfully manage ongoing
acquisition and divestiture activities to achieve the cost and growth synergies in accordance with the stated goals of
these transactions without impacting the delivery of base business objectives; (3) the ability to successfully manage
ongoing organizational changes designed to support our growth strategies, while successfully identifying,
developing and retaining key employees, especially in key growth markets where the depth of skilled employees is
limited; (4) the ability to manage and maintain key customer relationships; (5) the ability to maintain key
manufacturing and supply sources (including sole supplier and plant manufacturing sources); (6) the ability to
successfully manage regulatory, tax and legal requirements and matters (including product liability, patent,
intellectual property, and tax policy), and to resolve pending matters within current estimates; (7) the ability to
resolve the pending competition law inquiries in Europe within current estimates; (8) the ability to successfully
implement, achieve and sustain cost improvement plans in manufacturing and overhead areas, including the
Companys outsourcing projects; (9) the ability to successfully manage currency (including currency issues in
certain countries, such as Venezuela, China and India), debt, interest rate and commodity cost exposures and
significant credit or liquidity issues; (10) the ability to manage continued global political and/or economic
uncertainty and disruptions, especially in the Companys significant geographical markets, as well as any political
and/or economic uncertainty and disruptions due to a global or regional credit crisis or terrorist and other hostile
activities; (11) the ability to successfully manage competitive factors, including prices, promotional incentives and
trade terms for products; (12) the ability to obtain patents and respond to technological advances attained by
competitors and patents granted to competitors; (13) the ability to successfully manage increases in the prices of raw
materials used to make the Companys products; (14) the ability to stay close to consumers in an era of increased
media fragmentation; (15) the ability to stay on the leading edge of innovation and maintain a positive reputation on
our brands; and (16) the ability to rely on and maintain key information technology systems, including the transition
of our ordering, shipping and billing systems in North America and Western Europe to a new system. For additional
information concerning factors that could cause actual results to materially differ from those projected herein, please
refer to P&Gs most recent 10-K, 10-Q and 8-K reports.
Additional Information
In connection with the proposed transaction between Diamond and P&G, Diamond will file a
registration statement on Form S-4 with the SEC. This registration statement will include a proxy
statement of Diamond that also constitutes a prospectus of Diamond, and will be sent to the
shareholders of Diamond. Shareholders are urged to read the proxy
statement/prospectus and any other relevant documents when they become available, because they will
contain important information about Diamond, Pringles and the proposed transaction. The proxy
statement/prospectus and other documents relating to the proposed transaction (when they are
available) can be obtained free of charge from the SECs website at www.sec.gov. The documents
(when they are available) can also be obtained free of charge from Diamond upon written request to
Diamond Foods, Inc., Investor Relations, 600 Montgomery Street, San Francisco, California 94111 or
by calling (415) 445-7425, or from P&G upon written request to The Procter & Gamble Company,
Shareholder Services Department, P.O. Box 5572, Cincinnati, Ohio 45201-5572 or by calling (800)
742-6253.
This communication is not a solicitation of a proxy from any security holder of Diamond. However,
P&G, Diamond and certain of their respective directors and executive officers may be deemed to be
participants in the solicitation of proxies from shareholders in connection with the proposed
transaction under the rules of the SEC. Information about the directors and executive officers of
Diamond Foods, Inc. may be found in its 2010 Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC on
October 5, 2010, and its definitive proxy statement relating to its 2011 Annual Meeting of
Shareholders filed with the SEC on November 26, 2010. Information about the directors and
executive officers of The Procter & Gamble Company may be found in its 2010 Annual Report on Form
10-K filed
with the SEC on August 13, 2010, and its definitive proxy statement relating to its 2010
Annual Meeting of Shareholders filed with the SEC on August 27, 2010.