U Save Foods Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of
Minneapolis-based food distributor
Nash Finch Company
(
NAFC
) has inked an agreement to acquire Bag 'N Save supermarkets
located in Omaha and York, Nebraska.
Although the terms of the deal were not disclosed, the buyout
will give Nash Finch 11 Bag 'N Save stores in the Omaha area and
one in York. The deal is expected to be closed in the second
quarter.
Founded in 1981, Bag 'N Save chain is a family-owned business.
The company's product items range from grocery; dairy, frozen foods
to non-food items, which are distributed through chain grocery
stores in Nebraska.
Following the closure of the deal, Bag 'N Save will become the
third largest grocery chain among the retail groceries owned by
Nash Finch. Sun Mart is the largest retail owned by Nash Finch and
has 20 outlets. Sun Mart operates primarily in Nebraska, but also
has stores in Moorhead and Little Falls.
The buyout of Bag 'N Save grocery chain will take the total
number of stores in Nebraska to 27, which is higher than the number
of stores in any other state where Nash Finch operates.
Econofoods, with 13 supermarkets, is the second largest grocery
chain after Sun Mart in Nash Finch's bag. It distributes through
its outlets in Minnesota and western Wisconsin.
Nash Finch reported its forth quarter and fiscal 2011 earnings
result on March 1, 2012.
The fourth quarter 2011 earnings (excluding one-time items) of
97 cents per share beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 18.3%.
However, it slipped 2.5% from the prior-year earnings of $1.00 per
share, due to the ongoing macro-economic headwinds and increasing
competition.
However, fiscal 2011 earnings increased 8.3% year over year to
$3.89 per diluted share compared with $3.56 in the previous year.
The fiscal-year adjusted earnings surpassed the Zacks Consensus
Estimate by 4 cents.
Nash Finch declared a regular quarterly cash dividend of 18
cents per share of common stock. The dividend will be paid on March
23, 2012, to shareholders of record at the close of business on
March 9, 2012.
Nash Finch currently has a Zacks #3 Rank which implies a
short-term 'Hold' rating on the stock. On a long- term basis we
remain 'Neutral' on the stock.
NASH FINCH CO (
NAFC
): Free Stock Analysis Report
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