Case Corporation and New Holland complete merger

The company, which is traded on the New York Stock Exchange, is one of the largest in the equipment industry with combined 1998 revenue of approximately $12 billion. The multiple brands and corresponding distribution networks of both the Case and New Holland organizations will be maintained in the marketplace.

The merger agreement was announced by the two companies in May 1999. In late October and early November, the merger received clearance from regulatory agencies in Europe and the United States. Under the terms of the agreement, Case shareholders, who approved the transaction in August, will receive $55 per share.

The two companies share long histories in the equipment industry. Case was founded in 1842 near Racine, Wisconsin, by Jerome Increase Case. The company first made grain threshing machines. Through expansion and acquisition, the company developed a broad line of agricultural equipment, while also becoming the leading supplier of small- to medium-sized construction equipment. Case Capital, the company's financial services business, began in 1957.

New Holland was formed in 1991 from the merger of Ford New Holland and Fiat Geotech. Predecessor company Braud began the manufacture of agricultural equipment in France in 1870, and New Holland Machine Company followed in 1895. New Holland has rapidly established a significant global presence in agricultural equipment and a growing presence in the construction equipment industry.