PepsiCo says TRC bids for 2M shares at discount, and says shareholders should turn down offer

PepsiCo advises shareholders to reject TRC offer

PURCHASE, N.Y. — Food and drink maker PepsiCo Inc. said Thursday it was notified of a mini-tender offer made by TRC Capital Corp., and said its shareholders should not tender their stock because the bid is below market value.

PepsiCo said TRC made an offer for 2 million shares, or about 0.13 percent of the company’s outstanding stock, at a price of $53.65 per share. PepsiCo stock closed at $57.86 on Thursday, making the offer a 7.3 percent discount. PepsiCo said TRC’s offer expires after midnight Oct. 2, and shareholders can withdraw their offers as described in TRC documentation.

Mini-tender offers are bids for less than 5 percent of a company’s stock. According to the Securities and Exchange Commission, the offers are often made at below-market prices by firms that have not secured the funds to finance their bids. The agency says shareholders are also not always given the right to withdraw their offers.

PepsiCo shares were unchanged in aftermarket trading.