Purina Stock – Archived web content
Overview
On December 12, 2001 Ralston Purina Company merged with Nestlé Holdings, Inc. Pursuant to this merger, shares of Ralston Purina Company were exchanged for a cash settlement of USD33.50 for each share of common stock. Ralston Purina Company is no longer a public company and most of its businesses are now known as Nestlé Purina PetCare Company, which is a fully owned subsidiary of Nestlé Holdings, Inc., which is a fully owned subsidiary of Nestlé S.A.
This web site is intended to provide information to shareholders related to their prior ownership of Ralston Purina Company stock. This includes contact information that will help with questions on redeeming shares, receiving payment for outstanding dividend checks issued prior to the merger, obtaining 1099-B forms or calculating the cost basis for your shares.
Cost Basis Adjustments
A number of corporate transactions can affect a shareholder's tax basis in the Ralston Purina Company stock that he/she owns. Shown below is a list of those transactions that would require an adjustment to the tax basis, along with allocation percentages where appropriate. Each of the transactions has a link to the original shareholder letter with details on how to adjust your Ralston Purina Company stock cost basis.
| Date |
Transaction |
Effect on Basis |
| 09/01/1957 |
5 for 1 stock split |
|
| 21/12/1961 |
2 for 1 stock split |
|
| 10/01/1967 |
2 for 1 stock split |
|
| 21/01/1977 |
3 for 1 stock split |
|
| 08/03/1991 |
2 for 1 stock split |
|
| 31/07/1993 |
CBG Target Stock Issue |
95.57% of basis remains with Ralston Purina Company shares
4.43% of basis goes to CBG shares |
| 31/03/1994 |
Ralcorp Spin-Off |
88.3% of basis remains with Ralston Purina Company shares
11.7% of basis goes to Ralcorp shares |
| 15/05/1995 |
CBG Stock Redemption |
These RAL shares issued in exchange for CBG shares take on
same basis that the underlying CBG shares had |
| 10/04/1998 |
Agribrands Spin-0ff |
96.54% of basis remains with Ralston Purina Company shares
3.46% of basis goes to Agribrands shares |
| 15/07/1998 |
3 for 1 stock split |
|
| 01/04/2000 |
Energizer Spin-Off |
72.06% of basis remains with Ralston Purina Company shares
27.94% of basis goes to Energizer shares |
The tax basis allocation percentages on the stock splits and spin-offs are presented for U.S. federal income tax purposes only. Please note that other tax consequences may apply to Ralston Purina Company shareholders who received stock of a spun-off company with respect to employee awards of restricted Ralston Purina Company common stock, and Ralston Purina Company shareholders who are subject to the laws of any foreign jurisdiction.
Stock Purchase Price
The attached files contain historical prices for Ralston Purina Company stock. The information includes the following daily stock prices: open, high, low, and close. These prices are actual prices on each date and have not been adjusted for subsequent splits and spin-offs. The files only contain prices from July 28, 1980 through the date of the purchase by Nestlé S.A. If you purchased Ralston Purina Company stock prior to July 28, 1980 and would like to obtain that price, please contact Mary Strauch at 1-203-629-7223.
1980 - 1984 1985 - 1989 1990 - 1994 1995 - 2001
The following is an example of how you would adjust both prices and shares to account for splits and spin-offs that occurred after your purchase date.
Example
If you had bought 100 shares of Ralston Purina Company on May 4, 1998 at the closing price of 108.0625, your shares would have been affected by the events listed below:
15/07/1998 - 3 for 1 Stock Split
01/04/2000 - Energizer Spin-Off: 72.06% of basis remains with Ralston shares, 27.94% of basis goes with Energizer shares.
Assuming you have not made any other sales or adjustments, you would have 300 shares of Ralston Purina Company due to the split (100 shares times 3). However, you must adjust the price for both the split and the Energizer Spin-Off, i.e., the resulting adjusted price would be 25.95661 (108.0625 divided by 3, times 0.7206).
Any question relating to information on this page may be directed to Mary Strauch at 1-203-629-7223.
Pricing information has been provided by Bloomberg. Although this data is gathered from a reliable source, its completeness and accuracy cannot be guaranteed.
Ralston Purina Investor Contacts & FAQs
Please contact the companies/contacts below with any questions.
For questions on the merger with Nestlé or a 1099-B from the merger:
ComputerShare at 1-877-360-7251
For a replacement dividend check, questions on Energizer or Agribrands:
Continental Stock Transfer at 1-888-509-5581
For questions on Ralcorp:
Equiserve at 1-800-446-2617
For questions on General Mills:
Norwest Bank at 1-800-380-1372
For cost basis information:
Mary Strauch at 1-203-629-7223
Who do I contact if my address changed?
Contact Computershare Trust Company at 1-877-360-7251 to give them the updated information.
I still have my shares of Ralston Purina Company. How do I redeem the shares?
Contact Computershare Trust Company at 1-877-360-7251 and ask them to send you a Letter of Transmittal. You will fill out the Letter of Transmittal and return it to Computershare accompanied by your Ralston Purina Company Share certificates.
I redeemed my Ralston Purina Company stock in 2001, but never received a 1099-B Form. I need that to complete my tax return.
Contact Computershare Trust Company at 1-877-360-7251 and request a 1099-B Form.
I redeemed my Ralston Purina Company stock in 2001, but never received a 1099-B Form. I need that to complete my tax return.
Contact Computershare Trust Company at 1-877-360-7251 and request a 1099-B Form.
I think that there are still dividend checks issued prior to the merger that I haven't received. What do I do?
Contact Computershare Trust Company at 1-877-360-7251. They will assist you in determining whether there are still outstanding dividend checks for your account and, if so, will issue you a replacement check.
I don't know how to calculate the tax basis for my Ralston Purina Company shares, can you help me?
Please see above for information relating to your cost basis and an example of calculations.