Cott To Buy DSS Group For About $1.25 Bln - Quick Facts

(RTTNews) - Cott Corp. (COT) said that it has agreed to acquire DSS Group, Inc. for about $1.25 billion, including the assumption of debt and the issuance of preferred shares to Crestview Partners and other selling shareholders.

DSS Group is the parent company to DS Services of America, Inc., a direct-to-consumer services provider of bottled water, office coffee and water filtration services in the United States.

Cott is a producer of beverages on behalf of retailers, brand owners and distributors. The acquisition will extend Cott's beverage portfolio into new and growing markets, including water and coffee home and office delivery services, water filtration services, and retail services, while creating cost synergies as well as portfolio expansion.

In addition, the acquisition is expected to broaden the distribution platform of Cott by adding a national direct-to-consumer distribution channel with the 2,100 customer routes operated by DSS.

The transaction is expected to close by the end of January 2015. Upon completion of the acquisition, DSS will operate as a subsidiary of Cott, based in Atlanta, Georgia. DSS will continue to be led by Tom Harrington, DSS's current CEO and President, as well as the company's present leadership team.