SunOpta (SOY) was up over 30% Friday after announcing it’s being taken private at $6.50 per share (~$1B) by Refresco, who views the company as a vehicle to add scale in plant-based beverages…

… at a reasonable valuation, with the deal priced at ~11.5x NTM EBITDA - two turns below where the stock has traded historically.

The discount stems from margin volatility, with management opting to sacrifice near-term profitability to secure additional volumes…

… a trade that private markets are much better at pricing than public markets.