Double your pleasure, double your fun…

I’m two days behind on this blog post, mostly because I really wanted to make my new stock purchase post first, but the stock I am after has had 3 strong days in a row, and a good earnings report, so I’m hoping for some fast money to get out of it, so I can get in at a few dollars cheaper of a price.

Anyways, the reason for this post is to announce our excitement that Wrigley’s (symbol WWY) is being purchased by Mar’s.  And at a nice premium too.  The price is $80 dollars a share, which is about 28% over what the stock was trading for on Friday.  It’s a nice gain for me, since I bought the stock back in 2005, I paid a split-adjusted price around $50 (I can’t find the transaction in my history right now).

I’m forced with a decision now because this is an all cash deal. I won’t be owning Wrigley or any portion of Mar’s once the deal closes.  The stock’s trading around $76-77 now, and the deal is expected to close in 6-12 months.  The dividend is 34 cents a share, so lets settle on 3 payments, totaling $1.02.  Is it worth it to hold onto this, collect the dividends, and the $80 in cash when the deal closes, which also saves a commission fee from selling the stock.  Or should I try and sell at 77, pay my commission and put my money where it can earn more of a return in the next 6-12 months?

I’ll let you know what I decide.