Expected to announce bid winner within days.
Convenience store chain The Pantry Inc. is reportedly up for sale, according to the Wall Street Journal.
The paper noted that the Cary, N.C. company, which does business primarily under the Kangaroo Express banner, has a market value of $685 million, and using a typical takeover premium, an acquisition of the company could value it at more than $850 million.
The Pantry has hired an investment bank to run an auction. And with bids for the company due last week, a winner could be announced within days, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Pantry’s revenue declined 3.5% to $7.5 billion in the year ended Sept. 25, primarily due to a fall in fuel sales, which account for three quarters of total revenue. Fuel sales were also wounded in fiscal 2014 due to weak demand and a dip in average sales price, Reuters reported.
More than half of the Pantry’s 1,518 stores are located in the Southeastern U.S.
