In 2006, Albertsons Inc. split into pieces and the majority of it was acquired by grocery store giant Supervalu. Minneapolis-based Supervalu purchased the company for $17.4 billion, now it’s looking to sell.
Cerberus, the New York-based buyout firm with turnaround expertise, is in talks to line up several billion dollars in debt financing from banks including JPMorgan Chase & Co and Bank of America, according to the people familiar with the matter. A buyout of Supervalu could also require an equity check of more than $900 million, the people said.
Cerberus’ Supervalu strategy is widely expected to mirror its playbook at Albertsons, the supermarket chain that was sold to the private equity investor, Supervalu and CVS Caremark Corp for $10 billion in 2006.
Cerberus acquired 655 Albertsons locations and a few locations of other various brands in the complicated carve-out, under which Supervalu bought the remaining 564 stores in the Albertsons chain. Cerberus sold most of its assets, but held on to Albertsons.
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