Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc., the parent of the Circle K convenience-store chain, has raised its offer to acquire Seven & i Holdings Co. Ltd., the parent of the 7-Eleven and Speedway c-store chains, from $14.86 per share or approximately $39 billion, to $18.19 per share or approximately $47.2 billion, about 21%, according to a Bloomberg report.
In a “notice regarding media reports” dated Oct. 9, Seven & i President Ryuichi Isaka confirmed the offer, saying that the company has “received a revised confidential, private and non-binding proposal from Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. As requested by ACT, the company has maintained, and intends to continue to maintain, the confidentiality of its current discussions with ACT at this time. The company will continue to act in the best interest of its shareholders and other stakeholders of the company.”
Couche-Tard on Aug. 19 submitted a “friendly,” nonbinding proposal to Seven & i, parent of the 7-Eleven and Speedway c-store brands, to acquire all outstanding shares of the company. Seven & i confirmed at the time that it had received the confidential, nonbinding and preliminary acquisition proposal, and the Seven & i board formed a special committee of independent outside directors led by Stephen Hayes Dacus, to review the proposal.
Seven & i has rejected the initial proposal twice, saying it “undervalues” the company.
Couche-Tard did not immediately respond to a CSP request for comment on this latest offer.
In related news, Canadian public pension fund Caisse de Dépôt et Placement du Québec (CDPQ) has indicated its willingness to provide financial support to Couche-Tard in its efforts to acquire Seven & i, Bloomberg has reported. Vincent Delisle, head of liquid markets for CDPQ, confirmed for the news agency that the fund is prepared to offer equity or debt financing to Couche-Tard if necessary.
7-Eleven is No. 1 on CSP’s 2024 Top 202 ranking of U.S. c-store chains by store count. Alimentation Couche-Tard is No. 2.
Tokyo-based Seven & i is a global operator of convenience stores, superstores, supermarkets, specialty stores, foodservices, financial services and IT services. 7–Eleven International LLC franchises or licenses more than 44,000 stores in 19 countries and regions, The brand also operates corporate or franchise stores in the United States, Canada, Mexico and Japan. Globally, the 7-Eleven trademark is represented in approximately 83,000 stores.
Irving, Texas-based 7-Eleven Inc. operates, franchises or licenses more than 83,000 convenience stores in 19 countries and regions, including more than 13,000 7-Eleven convenience stores in the United States.
Laval, Quebec-based Couche-Tard operates in 31 countries and territories, with more than 16,700 stores. Its network includes more than 7,100 stores in the United States under the Circle K and Holiday Stationstores banners, and approximately 2,100 in Canada under the Circle K and Couche-Tard banners.
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