Japanese distribution giant Seven & i Holdings announced Wednesday that it had received a new takeover offer from its Quebec rival Couche-Tard, a month after rejecting a first proposal.
• Also read: Acquisition of 7-Eleven by Couche-Tard: the Japanese giant classified “essential” by its government
• Also read: Couche-Tard wants to buy 7-Eleven and become world No. 1
The company, which owns some 84,000 7-Eleven convenience stores in 19 countries, saw its stock jump almost 12% shortly after opening on the Tokyo Stock Exchange following initial press information.
The stock then quickly moderated its gains to finally close up 4.7% at 2,335 yen.
Seven & i Holdings is the target of a takeover offer by Quebec’s Alimentation Couche-Tard (ACT), which it had asked in early September to review its offer, considering it to be undervalued. ACT then offered $14.86 per share in cash.
More than 20%
The Japanese company declared Wednesday in a press release that it had “received a revised, confidential and non-binding proposal from Alimentation Couche-Tard”, saying it wanted to “continue to maintain the confidentiality of its discussions” with its Canadian rival”.
Earlier on Wednesday, the Bloomberg agency reported that this new takeover proposal, sent on September 19 to Seven & i, this time amounted to $18.19 per share, or around 20% more than its first proposal.
This would value the Japanese group at some $47.2 billion, according to Bloomberg, according to which no substantial negotiations have yet begun on this new offer. It would be the largest ever foreign acquisition of a Japanese company.
If the operation materializes, it would give birth to a global distribution juggernaut: to the Seven & i brands would be added the 16,700 Couche-Tard stores in 31 countries, which include the Circle K brand.
7-Eleven is the world’s largest convenience store chain. A quarter of them are in Japan, where these omnipresent convenience stores sell take-out meals as well as concert tickets and offer services (ATMs, bill payment, photocopier, etc.).
The Japanese government classified Seven & i as an “essential” company to the industrial sector in mid-September, a decision likely to complicate a foreign takeover.
