Cerberus Capital Management agreed to purchase Safeway Inc. for $9B on Thursday.
Cerberus owns Albertsons, the parent company of Acme, which has 110 stores in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland, employing more than 10,000 people. Albertsons (the fifth largest supermarket in the country) and Safeway (second largest) will merge, setting the table for a powerhouse in the industry.
Safeway shareholders will get $40 per share, $32.50 of which is in cash. The merger agreement was unanimously approved by the Safeway board of directors.
The deal creates a network of more than 2,400 stores, 27 distribution facilities and 20 manufacturing plants with more than 250,000 dedicated and loyal employees. No store closures are expected as a result of this transaction. Albertsons CEO Bob Miller will become executive chairman. Robert Edwards, Safeway’s president and CEO, will have the same position with the combined company. Read more about this story on PBJ.com.
