D E MASTER BLENDERS 1753 N.V.(fka DEMBF)

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D.E Master Blenders Rises as Coty Owner Buys In: Amsterdam Mover
By Martijn van der Starre - Jul 3, 2012 12:00 PM ET

D.E Master Blenders 1753 NV jumped the most since last month’s spinoff from Sara Lee Corp. in Amsterdam trading after a company linked to the owner of Coty Inc. purchased a stake in the tea and coffee maker.

The acquisition of the 12.19 percent stake by Donata Holding SE “is like a rabbit out of the hat for the markets,” Marco Gulpers, an Amsterdam-based analyst for ING Groep NV, said in a note to investors today. Donata holds the shares through units of JAB Holdings, a subsidiary of the company that controls Coty and owns a stake in Reckitt Benckiser Group Plc. (RB/)

JAB may increase its stake, though the investment company plans to remain a minority investor, a spokeswoman for JAB said.

“Maybe we will buy more shares, but there’s no timeframe at this moment,” Elke Neujahr said in a telephone interview.

D.E Master Blenders, trading on an “as-if-and-when- issued/delivered” basis, rose 6.8 percent to 9.99 euros at the close in Amsterdam, valuing the company at 5.94 billion euros ($7.5 billion). Settlement takes place from July 9, when the stock will gain an official listing.

Donata held 72.5 million shares as of June 29, a filing posted today by Dutch financial markets regulator AFM showed.

To contact the reporter on this story: Martijn van der Starre in Amsterdam at [e-mail]

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Mariajose Vera at [e-mail]