Mumbai, May 13: Godrej Consumer Products Ltd (GCPL) has bought out US-based Sara Lee’s 51 per cent stake in their joint venture company — Godrej Sara Lee — for $234 million.

The deal marks an end of a 15-year partnership. Godrej Sara Lee sells Good Knight mosquito repellents, the Hit brand of insecticides and Kiwi shoe polish.

The transaction follows Sara Lee’s decision to exit the household insecticides business and focus on food and beverages.

The Godrej Consumer Products scrip reached a new high on Thursday to end the day at Rs 339.05, which was 14 per cent higher than Wednesday’s close.

“This acquisition will help GCPL catapult to one of the strongest performers in the home and personal care space in India. Along with the Megasari acquisition in Indonesia, this transaction would make GCPL the second largest household insecticide player in Asia (outside Japan),” said a report by broking house Angel Securities.

GCPL, which exercised its right to buy Sara Lee’s 51 per cent, bought PT Megasari Makmur group, an Indonesian insecticide player, for an undisclosed sum in April.

GCPL’s buyout of Sara Lee’s stake is expected to close by the end of this month.

The Godrej group is on the lookout for acquisitions and has been keen to widen its portfolio of personal hygiene products and household insecticides. “The acquisition represents an important step towards Godrej Consumer becoming a leading emerging-markets multinational and dovetails well with our global 3 by 3 strategy — presence in three continents, Asia, Africa and Latin America, through three core categories, home care, personal wash and hair care,” said GCPL chairman Adi Godrej.

GCPL expects to fund the transaction through a mix of debt and equity and may even involve a private equity investor.