SABMiller jumped 4.8% to an intraday high of R790 per share on Monday following speculation in the UK Sunday Times and Telegraph newspapers that its suitor, Anheuser-Busch InBev, is close to submitting a bid.

According to the average of five analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg, AB InBev may pay more than £42 per share — which equates to about R895 for the brewer’s JSE investors at Monday’s exchange rate.

The offer would value SABMiller at about £68bn, or R1.45-trillion, which is an 11% premium to Monday’s R1.3-trillion market capitalisation on the JSE.

Also on Monday, SABMiller announced changes to certain board committees in preparation for the takeover offer.

The maker of beers such as Peroni and Grolsh said its chairman, Jan du Plessis, and independent director Trevor Manuel were appointed to the board’s corporate accountability and risk assurance committee.

A company spokesman said the nominations were "business as usual" and followed various retirements and new appointments made earlier this year.

Independent director Lesley Knox was also appointed to the nomination committee while Javier Ferran was appointed to the remuneration committee.

AB InBev has until October 14 to make a firm offer, under UK takeover rules. Neither company has said if an offer has been made. The acquisition of SABMiller would be the biggest in the industry’s history and cap more than a decade of consolidation across brewing companies.

A potential combination of the beer makers has been seen as likely for years as they have limited geographical overlap outside the US and are not controlled by a family foundation such as Heineken and Carlsberg.

SABMiller would consider a bid that provides good value for shareholders, according to people with knowledge of the matter.

Bloomberg, Reuters

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