(Reuters) - Keurig Dr Pepper Inc (N:KDP) said on Tuesday it would transfer its stock market listing to the Nasdaq later this month, to get access to a more diverse set of investors. The company will join tech giants and other consumer companies, including PepsiCo Inc (O:PEP) which switched exchanges in 2017.
Separately, JAB Holding Co, Keurig's majority owner, will redistribute about 76 million shares, or 5.4%, in the coffee and beverage company to its minority partners, investment banker Byron Trott's BDT Capital Partners and Dallas-based Quadrant Capital Advisors.
Keurig's Chief Executive Officer Bob Gamgort said JAB's move would push the beverage maker to "becoming a widely-held company."
Family-owned JAB Holding combined its Keurig coffee business and the publicly-traded soft drinks company to create Keurig Dr Pepper, which helped the conglomerate expand into the soft-drinks business.
Following the redistribution, JAB, which currently owns about a half of Keurig's public float through Maple Holdings BV, will own 44% of Keurig.
Mondelez International Inc (O:MDLZ) will continue to own 12% and the public float will increase to 44%, including shares held directly by the minority partners, the Dr Pepper soda maker said.
Keurig, which currently trades on NYSE, has a market capitalization of about $42 billion according to IBES data from Refinitiv. It will retain the "KDP" ticker with trading on the Nasdaq expected to begin on September 21.