Berry is acquiring Avintiv from private-equity funds managed by Blackstone Group LP, it said Friday in a statement

The takeover will lead to $50 million of annual cost savings and is expected to close by the year-end, Berry said in the statement. It is Evansville, Indiana-based Berry’s largest acquisition, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Berry rose 4.9 percent to $35 at 8:33 a.m. before the start of regular trading in New York.

There is a lot of middle market deal activity happening in the packaging sector. In July, Germany’s Gerresheimer AG said it will buy Perrysburg, Ohio-based plastic vials maker Centor US Holding Inc. from Montagu Private Equity for $725 million in cash 

 Barnes Group Inc. is buying Italy’s Thermoplay SpA for $55 million, announced on June 24. 

Pittsburgh-based PPG Industries Inc. (NYSE:  PPG) won Mergers & Acquisitions’ 2014 M&A Mid-Market Award for Strategic Buyer of the Year.

Berry Plastics said it has obtained committed debt financing for the deal, and that it may also sell some equity, depending on market conditions.

Avintiv operates at 23 sites in 14 countries and has more than 4,500 employees. On a pro-forma basis, it had sales of $2.1 billion and earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of $303 million in the year ended March.

Berry’s financial advisers on the deal were Credit Suisse Group AG and Barclays Plc, while Bryan Cave LLP was its legal adviser. Avintiv and Blackstone’s financial advisers were Citigroup Inc. and Bank of America Merrill Lynch and their legal adviser was Simpson Thatcher & Bartlett LLP.

 

Demitri Diakantonis contributed to this report