Coca-Cola is buying full control of BodyArmor for $5.6 billion (£4.1bn) in a deal that values the sports drink brand at about $8 billion, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday, citing people familiar with the matter.
Coca-Cola, which already owns 30 per cent of BodyArmor, is buying the remaining 70 per cent from the company’s founders and investors, according to the report. The deal is expected to be announced as soon as Monday, it added.
BodyArmor was backed at its founding in 2011 by basketball star Kobe Bryant, who died in a helicopter crash in early 2020 and had invested $6 million in the company.
The Journal reported that Bryant’s estate should collect about $400 million from the deal.
BodyArmor is a competitor to industry giant Gatorade, which is owned by PepsiCo, Coca-Cola’s main business rival.
BodyArmor expects sales to reach $1.4 billion this year, compared to $250 billion in 2018 when Coca-Cola first invested in the company.
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