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Boston Globe

Could Market Basket be sold? Not without Arthur T. Demoulas's permission.

Meanwhile, Now, though, the battle appears to be between Demoulas and his three sisters, the other key shareholders in the Tewksbury-based supermarket chain who helped 'Artie T.' buy out his cousin's faction in 2014. The four siblings finished paying off the debt from that transaction late last year. Together, the three sisters collectively control the company: Each of them owns around 20 percent of the company's shares, while Demoulas owns 28 percent, and a trust for the family's grandkids holds the rest. Advertisement There has been speculation on social media that the sisters could be looking to cash out, though the three board members aligned with them say that is not the case. The company's certificate of incorporation, drawn up after the resolution of the previous family fight 11 years ago, gives Demoulas a way to block a sale if his sisters were to pursue one. The charter states that an affirmative vote representing at least 80 percent of the shares is necessary to outright sell the company, likely worth billions of dollars today, or any significant real estate the company owns. One sister could potentially sell her 20 percent stake to, say, a private equity firm, but would need to give the company and Demoulas and the other sisters the opportunity to buy her stake first. Board member Michael Keyes, one of the three members who put Demoulas on paid leave, said there is no interest in selling Market Basket, and that the current fight is about ensuring the company has a strong future as an independent business. 'This is about longevity and making sure Market Basket is here for the next 100 years,' Keyes said in an email. 'That's why the other family members stood by Arthur and used their money to repay over a billion dollars of debt to keep this a family business. Despite their significant contribution, they have been frozen out from what has been and always will be a family business.' A spokesperson for Arthur T. Demoulas declined to comment about any potential sale of the company. Demoulas, who is 70, had been working his usual long hours and showed no interest in retiring or selling before the board members put him on paid leave, per executives familiar with his activity at the company. He had proposed that his two children on the company's staff, Telemachus and Madeline, be considered as successors, but the majority of the board gave Demoulas a document last August stating that none of his children would be considered for promotion to CEO. Advertisement Burt Flickinger III, managing director of retail consultancy Strategic Resource Group, said a minority stake would be sold at a deep discount to what the shares would be worth if the buyer was acquiring the entire company. Likewise, a Market Basket without Arthur T. and his top lieutenants would sell for far less than one with them still at the helm. The supermarket business is already so competitive, he said, with slim profit margins. Flickinger cited the strong work ethic, shrewd management skills, and commitment to keeping low prices shown by Demoulas as well as Joe Schmidt and Tom Gordon, two top executives who were also put on paid leave last week. 'He's the only one in North America that can win against Wegmans and Walmart,' Flickinger said. 'Make him and Joe and Tom leave the company, Walmart will wipe the floor with them, as will Costco, as will BJ's. ... They don't realize they're better off getting their annual dividends with Arthur running the company, than they are with kicking them out.' Jon Chesto can be reached at