U.S. grocer Kroger Co said on Friday it will buy smaller rival Albertsons Companies Inc in a $24.6 billion deal, creating a supermarket behemoth to take on leader Walmart Inc .
Kroger will pay $34.10 for each Albertsons share, representing a premium of about 33% to the stock's closing price on Wednesday, a day before media reports emerged of a deal between the two.
In a move that could help ease those concerns, the companies said they expect to divest some stores and Albertsons is ready to spinoff a standalone unit to its shareholders immediately before the Kroger deal closes. The new public company is estimated to comprise between 100 and 375 stores. "This merger ... accelerates our position as a more compelling alternative to larger and non-union competitors."
Kroger said it expects to reinvest about half a billion dollars of cost savings from deal synergies to reduce prices for customers. An incremental $1.3 billion will also be invested into Albertsons.
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