Reynolds American

History

Reynolds American was formed in January 2004 and began trading publicly on the New York Stock Exchange as RAI in August 2004.

In July 2004 the U.S. business of British American Tobacco (Brown & Williamson) was combined with that of R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company (R. J. Reynolds), under the R. J. Reynolds name. R. J. Reynolds and Brown & Williamson were the second and third-ranking U.S. tobacco companies prior to the combination. When they combined, R. J. Reynolds became a subsidiary of Reynolds American, with BAT holding a 42% share of RAI. Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Company, which manufactures the additive-free Natural American Spirit brand of tobacco products, also became a subsidiary of Reynolds American at that time.

Prior to becoming RAI operating companies, both R. J. Reynolds and Santa Fe were part of R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Holdings, Inc., which traded on the New York Stock Exchange as RJR. RJR became a subsidiary of RAI in July 2004. R. J. Reynolds was established as a tobacco company in Winston-Salem, North Carolina in 1875.

In 2006, Reynolds American expanded into the smokeless tobacco category, with the acquisition of Conwood, the second-biggest smokeless tobacco company in the United States. Conwood manufactures and markets moist and dry snuff, loose leaf, plug and twist chewing tobaccos. At the time of the acquisition, 70% of Conwood's sales came from the growing moist-snuff segment, with the Grizzly brand showing the fastest growth. Grizzly's continued growth since 2006 has made it the best-selling brand in the moist-snuff category.

In 2008, RAI was recognized as a leader in corporate sustainability by being added to the membership in the 2008-2009 Dow Jones Sustainability North America Index (DJSI North American). RAI is the only U.S. tobacco company and one of 125 North American companies on the index. Selection for the Index is based on performance in a number of economic, environmental and social criteria.

The Wall Street Journal reported in November 2009 that Reynolds American intended to buy Sweden-based Niconovum AB, a maker of products such as nicotine gum, for $44.5 million. The deal was completed in December.

Former Chairman, President and CEO of Reynolds Tobacco Daniel "Daan" Delen assumed the positions of President and CEO of Reynolds American on March 1, 2011, after former president, CEO and chairwoman Susan Ivey announced she would retire as chairwoman November 1, 2010 and as President and CEO effective February 28, 2011.

Ivey, now known as Susan Cameron, returned as CEO in April 2014 after being elected by the board of directors.

In July 2014, Reynolds American, Inc. announced it would buy Lorillard Tobacco Company for roughly $25 billion a result of slowed sales. The deal is valued at $27.4 billion, including debt. Reynolds agreed to pay $68.88 in cash and stock for every Lorillard share and assume its debt. The deal also included the sale of the Kool, Winston, Salem, and blu brands to Imperial for $7.1 billion. The merger became official on June 12, 2015.

A legal notice filed July 29, 2015 said that Reynolds must get a county permit to make Newports at its Tobaccoville plant, so for 18 months Imperial will make Newports and Reynolds will make three brands it sold.

On September 15, 2016, the former speaker of the US House, John Boehner, joined the board of Reynolds American.

On October 21, 2016, British American Tobacco announced that it had offered to buy the remaining 57.8 percent of Reynolds American for $47 billion. In January 2017, Reynolds American agreed to a $49.4 billion deal, expected to close in the third quarter of the year after approval from both companies' boards of directors.