Reckitt Benckiser Group Plc agreed to buy Mead Johnson Nutrition Co. for $16.6 billion, taking the U.K. consumer-products maker into the baby-formula market and providing a catalyst for growth as its sales momentum slows.
The $90-a-share takeover will add to earnings within a year and lead to 200 million pounds ($250 million) of cost savings after three years, the maker of Lysol cleaners said Friday. Reckitt shares fell, reversing early gains, as the company forecast 2017 revenue gains below analyst estimates and said it had a “soft” start to the first quarter.
