UPDATE: Leonard Green Looking At Potentially Buying BJ's
2011年3月23日 - 12:17AM
Dow Jones News
Private-equity firm Leonard Green & Partners LP is looking
into buying BJ's Wholesale Club Inc. (BJ) and has entered into a
confidentiality agreement to conduct due diligence.
A purchase would make BJ's, which sells its merchandise through
membership-only clubs, a private company, the latest in a string of
retail buyouts.
A regulatory filing March 21 outlined a confidentiality
agreement--a private exchange between the two entities--in which
BJ's said it would provide Leonard Green material to use in
"evaluating a potential acquisition of the company."
It has been reported that Leonard Green was interested in buying
the company, in which it already holds a 9.3% stake. BJ's could not
be reached Tuesday morning. The company has indicated it does not
plan to supply updates or make statements about what is going on
unless a definitive move is recommended by a committee of
independent directors or the process ends.
Private-equity interest in the retail sector has picked up
recently, and Leonard Green has been an especially busy player. The
Los Angeles buyout firm first reported its stake in BJ's last July,
saying it intended to approach the company about going private;
recently reached deals for fabric and crafts retailer Jo-Ann Stores
Inc. (JAS); and partnered with TPG Capital on its buyout of J. Crew
Group Inc. (JCG). The J. Crew deal, for $43.50 a share, or $3
billion, was at a 16% premium to where shares were just before the
deal was announced.
Leonard Green is apparently hungry for another acquisition, also
having recently made an offer to buy 99 Cents Only Stores (NDN).
That offer was at a 14.4% premium to shares' closing price the day
before.
BJ's would likely fetch a percentage premium in the teens as
well, analysts say, with the stock trading between roughly $40 and
$50 for the past nine months. Shares were recently up 1.7% to
$47.29.
Earlier this month, BJ's said its fiscal fourth-quarter profit
dropped 81%, hurt by charges related to store closings, though
revenue increased. Membership clubs have been reporting growth of
late as customers look for deals.
-By Karen Talley, Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-2196;
karen.talley@dowjones.com
-Nathan Becker contributed to this article
Jo Ann Stores (NYSE:JAS)
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Jo Ann Stores (NYSE:JAS)
過去 株価チャート
から 6 2023 まで 6 2024
