• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

Gen Z fled San Francisco for Texas and Florida. Now they’re turning ‘welcomer cities’ into the next big tech towns

2

Anthropic disables Fable and Mythos AI models after U.S. government bars it from giving foreigners access

3

U.S. energy secretary says 7 million barrels of oil exiting Persian Gulf daily, but Chevron CEO rebuts the claim

1

Gen Z fled San Francisco for Texas and Florida. Now they’re turning ‘welcomer cities’ into the next big tech towns

2

Anthropic disables Fable and Mythos AI models after U.S. government bars it from giving foreigners access

3

U.S. energy secretary says 7 million barrels of oil exiting Persian Gulf daily, but Chevron CEO rebuts the claim
Financebig tobacco

Are Lorillard shareholders getting ripped off in Reynolds mega-deal?

Phil Wahba
By
Phil Wahba
Phil Wahba
Senior Writer
Down Arrow Button Icon
Phil Wahba
By
Phil Wahba
Phil Wahba
Senior Writer
Down Arrow Button Icon
July 15, 2014, 1:32 PM ET
Photo by Luke Sharrett/Bloomberg—Getty Images

You’d think Lorillard (LO) shareholders would be thrilled with getting $27.4 billion from Reynolds American (RAI) in the cigarette mega-merger finally announced after months of speculation.

But Lorillard shares took a dive Tuesday morning, suggesting investors feel the many assets the company brings to the soon-to-be-created cigarette behemoth, from its head start in the e-cigs business to its hugely popular Newport menthol cigarettes brand, have not been fully appreciated by Reynolds, and that they could balk at the deal under its current terms. (Boards of both companies have approved the deal, which analysts say should be approved by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission within a year.)

Lorillard, the No. 3 tobacco player, owns the Newport brand, the best selling U.S. cigarettes with menthol, a mint-flavored additive, that has made them popular with African-Americans and young smokers. Lorillard gets the bulk of its sales from the Newport brand. (Menthol cigarette sales have been declining, though at a much slower pace than cigarettes overall. The number of traditional cigarettes sold in the United States has fallen 29.6% since 2004, according to Euromonitor International data. Adult smoking rates have fallen from 43% of Americans in 1965 to the current 18%.) And one wrinkle could come from regulators—the FDA has indicated it may put restrictions on menthol.

Lorillard also owns the market leading blu e-cigarette brand, giving it a strong position in a market now estimated to now be a $1.5 billion market, and set to grow 24.2% per year through 2018, according to projections from Research and Markets. To many observers’ surprise, the blu brand will be sold off to Imperial Tobacco as part of a big divestiture aimed at appeasing regulators but that will also bring in $4.7 billion to the combined company’s coffers. Still, the blu brand is an asset that helped Reynolds command that big pile of cash from Imperial. (Reynolds American will instead play its bet on the e-cigs market by pushing its VUSE digital vapor cigarettes, which it introduced last year in Colorado and is now rolling out nationwide.)

Reynolds said it expects cost savings of $800 million a year from the merger, via a reduction in overhead at the combined company, with the deal expected to contribute to its financial results as soon as the first year, and going into overdrive after that. What’s more, Lorillard has traditionally been strong on the East Coast and Reynolds on the West.

Reynolds is paying Lorillard investors $50.50 in cash for each share plus 0.2909 Reynolds shares, which including debt, comes to $27.4 billion, or $68.88 based on last night’s closing prices.

“We were surprised that the price paid for Lorillard was only $68.88, as we believe it is worth at least $72/share. Further, cost savings are larger than we anticipated,” said Wells Fargo analyst Bonnie Herzog.

Another benefit to the cigarette makers: the deal will combine the second- and third-largest U.S. tobacco companies and create a stronger competitor for Altria (MO), which commands about half of the traditional U.S. cigarettes market thanks to that company’s dominant Marlboro brand, by creating a massive No. 2 player.

According to a Wells Fargo survey of convenience stores, that could lead to bigger margins for cigarette makers (and ergo, smaller ones for retailers) and continue to shift more of the pricing power to Big Tobacco. Some 50% of retailers and wholesalers that service convenience stores surveyed recently by Wells Fargo said manufacturers have more pricing power than a year ago, compared to 30% saying that earlier this year. And this comes at a time dollar stores like Dollar General (DG) and Family Dollar Stores (FDO) are becoming major sellers of cigarettes, and traffic is declining at convenience stores, the biggest channel for cigarette sales. (CVS Caremark (CVS) will stop selling tobacco products this spring, a move that could ease some of the pressure on these retailers.)

As part of the deal, Reynolds American agreed to sell off several assets to the U.K.’s Imperial Tobacco Plc. In addition to blu eCigs, those brands include KOOL, Salem, Winston and Maverick. Imperial is acquiring those assets for $7.1 billion in cash, and Reynolds American said it expects to receive net cash proceeds of about $4.4 billion after taxes. B.A.T., which owns 42% of Reynolds, will continue to share technology with the combined company for the development and commercialization of new tobacco products such as vapor products.

About the Author
Phil Wahba
By Phil WahbaSenior Writer
LinkedIn iconTwitter icon

Phil Wahba is a senior writer at Fortune primarily focused on leadership coverage, with a prior focus on retail.

See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Finance

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Finance

U.S.’s screwworm fix is still a year away, risking more spread
North AmericaAgriculture
U.S.’s screwworm fix is still a year away, risking more spread
By Ilena Peng and BloombergJune 13, 2026
1 hour ago
The hottest debate on Wall Street right now: Does the flood of mega-IPOs and new shares signal a downturn ahead? That depends
InvestingIPOs
The hottest debate on Wall Street right now: Does the flood of mega-IPOs and new shares signal a downturn ahead? That depends
By Jason MaJune 13, 2026
1 hour ago
You can ignore AI giants like SpaceX, but your 401(k) won’t
Investingindex funds
You can ignore AI giants like SpaceX, but your 401(k) won’t
By Stan Choe and The Associated PressJune 13, 2026
3 hours ago
Trump says he’ll sign deal with Iran to reopen Hormuz Sunday
PoliticsIran
Trump says he’ll sign deal with Iran to reopen Hormuz Sunday
By Arsalan Shahla, Maria Paula Mijares Torres and BloombergJune 13, 2026
7 hours ago
A deal to the end the U.S.-Iran war could be finalized within 24 hours. Tehran wants to charge ships crossing Hormuz ‘for services rendered’
Middle EastIran
A deal to the end the U.S.-Iran war could be finalized within 24 hours. Tehran wants to charge ships crossing Hormuz ‘for services rendered’
By The Associated PressJune 13, 2026
10 hours ago
ravi
CommentaryWeather and forecasting
I spent 8 years flood-proofing a city. Capital markets are running out of time to take El Niño seriously
By Ravi S. BhallaJune 13, 2026
13 hours ago

Most Popular

Gen Z fled San Francisco for Texas and Florida. Now they’re turning ‘welcomer cities’ into the next big tech towns
Real Estate
Gen Z fled San Francisco for Texas and Florida. Now they’re turning ‘welcomer cities’ into the next big tech towns
By Sydney LakeJune 13, 2026
15 hours ago
Anthropic disables Fable and Mythos AI models after U.S. government bars it from giving foreigners access
AI
Anthropic disables Fable and Mythos AI models after U.S. government bars it from giving foreigners access
By Jeremy KahnJune 13, 2026
20 hours ago
U.S. energy secretary says 7 million barrels of oil exiting Persian Gulf daily, but Chevron CEO rebuts the claim
Energy
U.S. energy secretary says 7 million barrels of oil exiting Persian Gulf daily, but Chevron CEO rebuts the claim
By Jordan BlumJune 12, 2026
1 day ago
Corporate America has been draining the world's water. Matt Damon's new campaign calls on Gap, Starbucks, and Amazon to help give it back
Environment
Corporate America has been draining the world's water. Matt Damon's new campaign calls on Gap, Starbucks, and Amazon to help give it back
By Catherina GioinoJune 9, 2026
4 days ago
Current price of oil as of June 12, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of oil as of June 12, 2026
By Joseph HostetlerJune 12, 2026
1 day ago
American taxpayers have spent $33 billion on sports stadiums. They got fewer seats—and higher prices
Success
American taxpayers have spent $33 billion on sports stadiums. They got fewer seats—and higher prices
By Catherina GioinoJune 11, 2026
2 days ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.