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Anheuser-Busch Cos. Inc. is set to reject Belgian brewer InBev's $46.3 billion unsolicited takeover offer, according to the Wall Street Journal, which cited people familiar with the situation.

The article posted to the Wall Street Journal's Web site Wednesday said A-B will argue that InBev's $65 per share offer undervalues the iconic American brewer. A-B is also expected to present its own strategic plan, which could include the company selling its noncore assets, such as its theme park operation, to boost the company's share price, according to the article.

A-B and InBev officials were not immediately available for comment.

A rejection of InBev's offer is likely to prompt InBev to take its takeover proposal directly to A-B shareholders, according to Craig Hutson, senior investment grade analyst at Gimme Credit, a corporate bond research firm.

"The longer (Anheuser-Busch) goes without engaging InBev's senior management, the more likely it becomes that InBev takes a hostile offer directly to (A-B) shareholders," Hutson said. "We do not believe (A-B) has many takeover defenses, and the 'just say no' response will elicit a flurry of shareholder lawsuits."

The Wall Street Journal's sources said to justify its rejection, A-B is expected to increase the level of its cost savings plan from $500 million to $1 billion over the next four years. The company is also considering paying a special dividend to its shareholders, according to the article.

The news comes the same day InBev CEO Carlos Brito sent another letter to Anheuser-Busch's board of directors reaffirming InBev's $46.3 billion takeover bid and informing A-B it has paid approximately $50 million in commitment fees to its lending group demonstrating its resolve to make a deal happen.

Brito called the $65 per share offer a "firm proposal" saying the market reaction to the proposal has been "extremely positive."

The $65 per share price is a roughly 24 percent premium to Anheuser-Busch's closing price of $52.58 a share May 22 this year, the day before a Financial Times blog cited anonymous sources who said InBev was preparing its bid for A-B. Anheuser-Busch shares closed at $61.76 on Wednesday.

In his letter, Brito told A-B's board "that time is of the essence."

Analyst Kris Kippers with Belgian brokerage Petercam SA estimated in a note June 13 that a sale of A-B's theme parks and packaging companies could generate as much as $4.4 billion cheap payday loans.

According to Kippers, the company could receive about $2.9 billion if it sold Busch Entertainment Corp., the family entertainment division of Anheuser-Busch that owns Busch Gardens and SeaWorld and operates nine theme parks across the country. A-B also announced in February that it planned to open four additional parks to be built in Dubai.

A-B's packaging unit, which includes Metal Container Corp., Eagle Packaging Inc., Longhorn Glass Corp. and Anheuser-Busch Recycling Corp., could fetch $1.5 billion, according to Kippers. Metal Container produces cans and lids, Eagle Packaging makes liners for bottle caps, Longhorn Glass is a glass bottle supplier and A-B Recycling is one of the world's largest recyclers of used aluminum beverage containers.

InBev Chief Financial Officer Felipe Dutra said in a conference call earlier this month that the company is considering selling non-core assets to help fund the potential purchase of A-B. He said InBev is evaluating both companies, not just A-B, in making their decision on which non-core assets to sell.

"Assets not fully integrated with the focus of our business could be sold," Dutra said at the time.

Busch Entertainment announced in October that it would move its corporate headquarters from St. Louis to Orlando, Fla., by this July.

St. Louis-based Anheuser-Busch Cos. Inc. (NYSE: BUD), through its Anheuser-Busch Inc. subsidiary, is the leading domestic brewer, holding a 48.5 percent share of U.S. beer sales. The company also manufactures and recycles aluminum cans and operates theme parks.

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