Latest news with #Couche-Tard
Business Insider
6 hours ago
- Business
- Business Insider
'Highly Misleading': Alimentation Couche-Tard Stock (TSE:ATD) Notches up as Seven & i Pushes Back
It would be easy to think that the recent failed deal between Canadian convenience store giant Alimentation Couche-Tard (TSE:ATD) and Japanese convenience store giant Seven & i would be the end of the story. That is not the case, however, as Seven & i is fighting back against remarks Couche-Tard made in the aftermath of the failed deal. Seven & i fighting back is good news for Couche-Tard, though, as investors gave it a fractional boost in Wednesday morning's trading. Elevate Your Investing Strategy: Take advantage of TipRanks Premium at 50% off! Unlock powerful investing tools, advanced data, and expert analyst insights to help you invest with confidence. When the deal ultimately fell through, Couche-Tard declared that Seven & i had pretty much scuttled the whole thing by refusing to play along for the year that Couche-Tard tried, ultimately in vain, to get something going. But Seven & i is fighting back, calling Couche-Tard's remarks 'highly misleading,' and noting that Seven & i acted in good faith that whole time. In fact, for all of Couche-Tard's allegations that Seven & i was a dead fish, Seven & i's response was that, essentially, Couche-Tard was the exact opposite: a loose cannon in a china shop that absolutely did not care about consequences. Seven & i's concerns about antitrust issues and the broader market were largely dismissed, and Couche-Tard had no real plan to address those concerns at all. Missed Opportunity or Dodged Bullet? Meanwhile, outside observers are surveying the wreckage of the deal, and wondering if this was a missed opportunity. Indeed, some outsiders think exactly that. But a substantial amount of outsiders are also thinking that this was less a missed opportunity and more a missed disaster in the making. Mohamed Amer, PhD, who also serves as a 'CEO & strategic board advisor' as well as a 'strategy doctor,' noted that Couche-Tard here '…avoided a likely disaster in terms of value destruction, and 7-Eleven gets to continue controlling its strategic direction and cultural coherence.' Headcount Corporation founder and CEO Mark Ryski noted that '…it's not unusual for one or both parties to get cold feet. I suspect that's what happened here.' While there certainly would have been advantages in some senses—Couche-Tard's footprint would have gone way up while Seven & i could have focused on its Japanese business—it may well have been for the best to shutter the deal altogether. Is Alimentation Couche-Tard Stock a Good Stock to Buy? Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Strong Buy consensus rating on TSE:ATD stock based on 12 Buys assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 7.29% loss in its share price over the past year, the average TSE:ATD price target of C$82.67 per share implies 7.38% upside potential.
CTV News
16 hours ago
- Business
- CTV News
Seven & i pushes back against Couche-Tard's reasons for deal talks ending
The parent company of 7-Eleven has pushed back against the reasons Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. gave for why a takeover deal never materialized. Couche-Tard said last week that it was ending a yearlong effort to buy Seven & i Holdings Co. Ltd., saying there had been no sincere or constructive engagement from the Japan-based company over a potential deal. Seven & i's special board committee said Couche-Tard's claims were highly misleading as it rejected the characterization in a letter issued Tuesday. 'We consistently engaged in good faith, and we are disappointed that [Couche-Tard] has decided to walk away from these discussions. We are further disappointed that they have done so in a way that completely mischaracterizes both our engagement and the significant hurdles this transaction faced that they were not committed to resolving,' the letter said. It said that from the start, Couche-Tard didn't take competition concerns seriously, and didn't present a credible plan as to how those concerns would be addressed. Given the scale of the two convenience store chains, Seven & i noted that regulators would likely require a 'very significant divestiture' before approving a deal, but it said Couche-Tard was not able to provide a plan on who could be the buyer or how such a deal would work. Couche-Tard said in its letter last week that it received multiple indications of interest from potential buyers of divested assets, but that Seven & i didn't provide the needed additional information to move those talks forward. The Laval-based company also said in its letter that there was not only a lack of engagement, but also a 'calculated campaign of obfuscation and delay' from Seven & i that reinforced its governance concerns. Couche-Tard initially met with Seven & i on July 23, 2024, with the 7-Eleven owner making talks public in August. The company rejected Couche-Tard's initial offer reportedly worth about US$38.6 billion, leading Couche-Tard to submit a higher offer that media reports suggest was worth US$47 billion. Soon after the second bid, Junro Ito, a member of the family that helped found the company, put forward a new management buyout proposal. But Seven & i resumed talks with Couche-Tard after the family-led effort failed to secure financing. Even as talks resumed, Seven & i announced in March a plan to sell billions of dollars worth of its non-convenience store assets to Bain Capital and launch an initial public offering of its North American 7-Eleven business. The two sides went back and forth with concerns about regulatory approval and a lack of engagement, until on July 16 Couche-Tard said it was ending its bid. Seven & i said it did engage faithfully in the process, and held ten virtual meetings along with the two that Couche-Tard referenced. It said its governance was up to the task, and it was ready to go the distance to determine if a solution could be found. The criticism, including on scripted meetings, demonstrates an unfortunate lack of knowledge of the Japanese market, the board said. 'To suggest that our management presentations were scripted is to misunderstand Japanese culture. Sometimes being different isn't wrong or an act of resistance.' Seven and i said it was disappointed in Couche-Tard ending the process but that it wasn't surprised, pointing to both the regulatory hurdles, and the wider economic issues that have weighed on Couche-Tard. 'We understand and respect the operational, financial and market challenges their business is facing, and we recognize how financing markets have changed. But there is no need to blame Seven & i for that reality.' Couche-Tard's share price had gone from trading around $82 a year ago to about $69 before it announced an end to its deal efforts, which sent its share price up to about $77 to give the convenience store giant about a $73 billion market capitalization. This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 23, 2025. Ian Bickis, The Canadian Press
Winnipeg Free Press
20 hours ago
- Business
- Winnipeg Free Press
Seven & i pushes back against Couche-Tard's reasons for deal talks ending
The parent company of 7-Eleven has pushed back against the reasons Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. gave for why a takeover deal never materialized. Couche-Tard said last week that it was ending a yearlong effort to buy Seven & i Holdings Co. Ltd., saying there had been no sincere or constructive engagement from the Japan-based company over a potential deal. Seven & i's special board committee said in a letter issued Tuesday that Couche-Tard made 'highly misleading' claims as it ended its efforts, and that Seven & i consistently engaged in good faith. It says that from the start, Couche-Tard didn't take competition concerns seriously, and didn't present a credible plan as to how those concerns would be addressed. Given the scale of the two convenience store chains, Seven & i noted that regulators would likely require they make a 'very significant divestiture' before approving a deal, but Couche-Tard was not able to provide a plan on who could be the buyer or how such a deal would work. Seven & i also pushed back against the characterization that its governance was not up to the task, and suggested that Couche-Tard perhaps did not properly understand the Japanese market. Monday Mornings The latest local business news and a lookahead to the coming week. This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 23, 2025. Companies in this story: (TSX:ATD)
Hamilton Spectator
21 hours ago
- Business
- Hamilton Spectator
Seven & i pushes back against Couche-Tard's reasons for deal talks ending
The parent company of 7-Eleven has pushed back against the reasons Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. gave for why a takeover deal never materialized. Couche-Tard said last week that it was ending a yearlong effort to buy Seven & i Holdings Co. Ltd., saying there had been no sincere or constructive engagement from the Japan-based company over a potential deal. Seven & i's special board committee said in a letter issued Tuesday that Couche-Tard made 'highly misleading' claims as it ended its efforts, and that Seven & i consistently engaged in good faith. It says that from the start, Couche-Tard didn't take competition concerns seriously, and didn't present a credible plan as to how those concerns would be addressed. Given the scale of the two convenience store chains, Seven & i noted that regulators would likely require they make a 'very significant divestiture' before approving a deal, but Couche-Tard was not able to provide a plan on who could be the buyer or how such a deal would work. Seven & i also pushed back against the characterization that its governance was not up to the task, and suggested that Couche-Tard perhaps did not properly understand the Japanese market. This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 23, 2025. Companies in this story: (TSX:ATD)
Yomiuri Shimbun
a day ago
- Business
- Yomiuri Shimbun
Withdrawal of Takeover Proposal for Seven & i: How to Increase Corporate Value Remains a Challenge
One of the largest-ever takeover bids by a foreign firm for a Japanese company has abruptly come to an end. The yearlong battle may have an important lesson on ways to increase corporate value. Leading Canadian convenience store operator Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. has withdrawn its proposal to acquire Seven & i Holdings Co. for about ¥7 trillion. The Canadian company made the proposal in July last year and continued negotiations, but it broke them off, citing a 'lack of constructive engagement' as the reason for the withdrawal. In response, Seven & i countered that the criticism missed the mark. The public was highly interested in the developments of the takeover bid. Would the meticulous management of the Seven-Eleven convenience store chain, which has become a part of the social infrastructure, be maintained under the umbrella of a foreign company? However, the reality is likely that the talks between Seven & i, which insisted on pursuing its growth independently, and Couche-Tard ended without deepening substantive discussions on specific measures to improve corporate value. The negative side of the situation was that the two sides were so busy in a tug-of-war with each other that they were unable to sufficiently work out business improvement measures. Going forward, Seven & i will need to quickly improve its corporate value. This is because the company has been pursuing structural reforms, including the separation of struggling Ito-Yokado Co., but is only halfway through to restoring profitability. The recent share prices of Seven & i are more than 20% lower than the acquisition prices offered by Couche-Tard. If the growth strategy stalls and the stock prices remain stagnant, Seven & i could become a takeover target again. The biggest challenge for Seven & i is to rebuild its overseas convenience store business, which accounts for about 70% of its total sales. It has over 10,000 stores in the United States, more than any other convenience store company, but the firm is unable to fully grasp the needs of the local market. On the other hand, the Seven-Eleven convenience store chain, which ranks top in Japan, has increased sales at relatively high prices with the selling points of its brand power and the quality of its products. Has the long experience of success caused Seven & i to become complacent? It has been pointed out that, amid prolonged high prices, the company was slow to introduce products with the sense of affordability demanded by consumers. To accelerate growth, it will be necessary to consider measures to form a new partnership, among other steps. In recent years, mergers and acquisitions of Japanese companies by foreign firms have become prominent, partly due to the trend of the yen's depreciation. It can be said that the current times are an era in which even well-known companies have become targets of acquisition by foreign companies. Companies will be required to consider takeover proposals impartially from the standpoint of shareholders. It will also be vital to thoroughly fulfill their accountability and work to implement highly transparent management. Japanese companies' internal reserves have grown to about ¥600 trillion, but the money is not allocated to investment in growth. This is also reflected in the form of undervalued stock prices. Companies should develop growth strategies and actively promote investment. (From The Yomiuri Shimbun, July 23, 2025)
