By Maria Hickey, KWMU
St. Louis, MO. – August Busch IV will take over as president and C-E-O of Anheuser-Busch December first.
The company's board of directors announced the decision Wednesday.
Patrick Stokes has held the positions since 2002. He'll become chairman of the board. August Busch III will step down from the chairmanship to become a board member.
St. Louis business analyst Julie Niemann says the succession is no surprise.
"It was a case where he was clearly being groomed for it, moved through various aspects of it, and Mr. Stokes a few months ago started letting go of some of his stocks and his options," Niemann said.
Forty-two year old August Busch IV has been president of Anheuser's domestic beer company since 2002.
He will mark the fifth generation of the Busch family to lead the company.