Quaker gives Pepsi more time

Cereal and sports-drink maker Quaker Oats Co. on Monday gave proposed buyer US drinks giant PepsiCo Inc., an additional 30 days to sell its All Sport beverage unit, providing extra time for the companies to get regulatory approval for their $13.5 billion merger, Reuters reports. The extension comes less than one month after Pepsi said its acquisition of Quaker Oats would be delayed until later in the third quarter as talks with U.S. Federal Trade Commission officials continued. FTC officials have expressed competition concerns over Pepsi’s​ proposed purchase of Quaker Oats'​ Gatorade, the dominant sports drink. Gatorade accounts for about three-quarters of US take-home sales in the $2.5 billion sports drink market and is expected to give Pepsi a significant advantage over rival Coca-Cola Co, the world's largest soft-drink company. All Sport, though the third-largest sports drink behind Gatorade and Coke's Powerade line, holds less than 5 per cent of the market. Powerade's market share is about 15 per cent. Pepsi, which reached an agreement in May to sell the All Sport line to Atlanta-based Monarch Co. for an undisclosed price, previously expected the deal to close in the second quarter. Monday's extension effectively pushes that date back a month. Quaker Oats shares were down 45 cents at $90.80 in midday New York Stock Exchange as investors continued to express nervousness that the deal, announced last December, may be less likely to close as the FTC investigation drags on. PepsiCo shares climbed 50 cents to $44.70.