Louis Dreyfus Commodities LLC is buying refined sugar processor Imperial Sugar Co. for about $77.5 million.
Houston area-based Imperial Sugar's board unanimously approved the acquisition, which is targeted to close in the second quarter.
Louis Dreyfus will pay $6.35 per share, which is a 57 percent premium to Imperial Sugar's closing price of $4.05 per share on Monday. Imperial Sugar currently has approximately 12.2 million outstanding shares.
The companies said Tuesday that the total value of the deal is about $203 million, which includes debt and pension liabilities.
Last month Imperial Sugar, which is based in Sugar Land, said it netted $60.4 million from the sale of its 50 percent stake in Wholesome Sweeteners Inc. to an affiliate of the Arlon Group.
