Mead Johnson

Mead Johnson & Company, LLC is an American division and subsidiary of British company Reckitt Benckiser. It is a leading manufacturer of infant formula both domestically and globally with its flagship product Enfamil. The company dates back to a firm created by Edward Mead Johnson, one of the co-founders of Johnson & Johnson, who created his own business in 1895, which was renamed Mead Johnson & Company in 1905. The company was majority owned by Bristol-Myers Squibb after an acquisition in 1967, but was spun-off in 2009 as an independent firm.

Mead Johnson & Company, LLC
Type Limited liability company
IndustryPediatric nutrition
Founded1905 (1905)
FounderEdward Mead Johnson
HeadquartersRiver Point, Chicago, Illinois
Evansville, Indiana
(Global Operations Center)
Key people
Aditya Sehgal, EVP Infant and Child Nutrition
Number of employees
7,500 (2017)
ParentReckitt Benckiser
Websitewww.meadjohnson.com

In the year end 31 December 2016, Mead Johnson reported net sales of $3,743 million. Fifty percent of those sales were generated in Asia, 17% in Latin America and 33% in North America/Europe. For the same time period, the company reported total assets of $4,088 million.

In February 2017, British consumer goods company Reckitt Benckiser (RB) bid $16.7 billion for the company.[1] On June 15, 2017 MJN announced that its merger with RB has been completed. As a result, MJN's common stock is no longer traded on the New York Stock Exchange, effective the announcement date.[2]

History and products
Dextri-Maltose and Pablum, early Mead Johnson products

Edward Mead Johnson had founded Johnson & Johnson in 1886 together with his brothers. In 1895, Johnson developed a side business called The American Ferment Company to create a digestive aid. In 1897, E. Mead Johnson left the family business to go out into business on his own in Jersey City, New Jersey, and in 1905, the company was re-established as Mead Johnson & Company.[3] The firm's first major infant formula was developed in 1910, and Dextri-Maltose, a carbohydrate-based milk modifier was introduced in 1911, making it the first American product for infants to be clinically approved and recommended by doctors. The firm moved to Evansville, Indiana, in 1915, in the wake of World War I, as part of an effort to have easier access to the raw agricultural ingredients that were needed for its products, which required Johnson to build a series of new plants and factories to replace the ones he had left behind in New Jersey.[3]

Edward Mead Johnson died in 1934, and Lambert Mead Johnson succeeded his father as president, and served in the position until 1955, making him the longest-serving president in company history.[3] D. Mead Johnson was the third generation of the family to serve as chief executive of the firm. During his tenure, which lasted from 1955 until the firm's takeover by Bristol-Myers in 1968, the firm's annual sales tripled to $131 million, and grew to nearly 4,400 employees.[4]

Acquisition and spin-off from Bristol-Myers

Bristol-Myers reached agreement in August 1967 for a deal under which Mead Johnson would be acquired, with shareholders receiving a mix of common and preferred stock in a deal valued at $240 million. Mead Johnson's net sales in 1966 were $131 million with earnings of $7.3 million.[5]

Bristol-Myers announced in February 2009 that it was going to spin off Mead Johnson to focus on its primary pharmaceutics business, with an initial public offering estimated to bring in $562.5 million and would leave Bristol-Myers with 90% ownership of the firm.[6] A plan offered in November 2009 would allow shareholders of Bristol-Myers to exchange one dollar of stock in that company for $1.11 worth of shares in Mead Johnson for the 133.5 million shares in the firm, which would value the company at $7.7 billion based on the stock's then current closing price. The stock swap was intended to provide a tax-free exchange. CEO James M. Cornelius of Bristol-Myers said that "With a successful execution of this split-off, we fully consider ourselves a BioPharma company".[7]

Acquisition by Reckitt Benckiser

In February 2017 it was announced that Reckitt Benckiser (RB) was in advanced negotiations to acquire Mead Johnson.[8][9] On February 10, 2017, Reckitt Benckiser Group announced it had agreed to buy Mead Johnson Nutrition Co. for $16.6 billion.[10]

RB's intention was to acquire Mead Johnson Nutrition for $90 per share in cash. In order to effect the transaction, RB incorporated a subsidiary in Delaware into which Mead Johnson Nutrition has merged, with Mead Johnson Nutrition being the surviving entity at completion.[11]

Mead Johnson announced on June 12, 2017 that the final regulator approval to complete the acquisition had been received. On June 15, 2017 the merger was completed and Mead Johnson became the Infant Formula and Child Nutrition (IFCN) Division of RB.

References
  1. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2017-04-09. Retrieved 2017-04-10.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) Reuters Deals
  2. "Mead Johnson Nutrition Merger with Reckitt Benckiser Completed". yahoo.com. Archived from the original on 28 January 2018. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
  3. Our History Archived 2012-09-01 at the Wayback Machine, Mead Johnson & Company. Accessed September 1, 2010.
  4. Saxon, Wolfgang. "D. M. Johnson, 78; Led Mead Johnson In Rapid Expansion" Archived 2016-08-19 at the Wayback Machine, The New York Times, January 23, 1993. Accessed September 1, 2010.
  5. Reckert, Clare M. "Exchange of Stock Set; MERGER DEAL SET BY BRISTOL-MYERS" Archived 2013-05-24 at the Wayback Machine, The New York Times, August 25, 1967. Accessed September 1, 2010.
  6. Staff. "Mead Johnson Set to Test I.P.O. Waters" Archived 2010-02-06 at the Wayback Machine, The New York Times, February 10, 2009. Accessed September 1, 2010.
  7. Staff. "Bristol-Myers to Split Off Mead Johnson Nutrition" Archived 2010-03-12 at the Wayback Machine, The New York Times, November 16, 2009. Accessed September 1, 2010.
  8. Thomas Mulier and Paul Jarvis (1 February 2017). "Reckitt Targets Mead Johnson With Surprise $16.7 Billion Bid". Bloomberg. Archived from the original on 2 February 2017. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
  9. Dana, Mattioli; Dana, Cimilluca (February 1, 2017), Reckitt Benckiser Is in Talks to Buy Mead Johnson, New York City: Wall Street Journal, archived from the original on February 2, 2017, retrieved January 4, 2017
  10. Chaudhuri, Saabira (February 10, 2017), Reckitt Benckiser to Buy Mead Johnson for $16.6 Billion, The Wall Street Journal, archived from the original on February 11, 2017, retrieved February 12, 2017
  11. "Commission Decision 08-M-008 2017: Acquisition by Reckitt Benckiser Group Plc. of Mead Johnson Nutrition Company - Philippine Competition Commission". phcc.gov.ph. Archived from the original on 2018-04-26. Retrieved 2017-05-08.
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