Food & Beverage

AB InBev stock up on report it may sell assets after scrapping Asia IPO plan

Key Points
  • Anheuser-Busch InBev is mulling over the sale of several business units, The Wall Street Journal reported.
  • The Bud Light brewer recently called off an initial public offering of its Asian business.
  • The company had planned to use some proceeds from the IPO to reduce its debt.
A customer puts a bottle of Cass Fresh beer into a shopping cart at an E-Mart store in Seoul, South Korea, Aug. 31, 2018
SeongJoon Cho | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Bud Light brewer Anheuser-Busch InBev is thinking about selling off business units in South Korea, Australia and Central America, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday.

Shares of the company jumped less than 2% in afternoon trading on the report.

AB InBev called off the initial public offering of its Asian business on Friday, citing in part "the prevailing market conditions." The proceeds from the IPO would have helped the company reduce its debt, a result of deal-making that made it the world's largest brewer.

Citing people familiar with the matter, the Journal reported that the company is now hoping to raise at least $10 billion from selling off assets, including some that were a major part of the called-off IPO.

The company is also considering cutting its dividend again after slashing it last year, but some board members are reluctant to do so, the people told the Journal.

AB InBev did not immediately respond to a request for comment from CNBC.

Read more about what business units AB InBev is considering selling here.