golf clubs on sale news

Fortune Brands Inc. agreed to sell Acushnet Co., its golf business based in Fairhaven, Mass., to a group led by Fila Korea Ltd., the owner of the Fila brand globally, and Mirae Asset Private Equity for $1.23 billion in cash. Fortune Brands will realize proceeds of about $1.1 billion after taxes and expenses from the sale of the maker of Titleist and Pinnacle golf balls, golf clubs and the FootJoy golf shoe, glove and apparel brand. The deal is expected to close this summer. The sale is part of Fortune Brands CEO Bruce Carbonari’s strategy to spin off the company’s golf, and home and security businesses by the fourth quarter to concentrate on distilled spirits, including Jim Beam bourbon. It plans to rename itself. Astro-Med, based in West Warwick, reported first-quarter net income of $431,000, or 6 cents per share, compared with $430,000, or 6 cents a share in the year-ago period. Sales were $18.9 million for the quarter that ended April 30, up 10.4 percent from last year’s first quarter. Albert W. Ondis, chairman and chief executive, said, “Each of our business segments reported revenue increases over their respective sales volume in the first quarter of the prior year, and all three brands drove sales growth in line with expectations set forth in our three-year strategic plan.”