Shares of Seven & I Holdings were stuck in choppy trading after the company denied a media report that it was rebuffing a $47 billion takeover offer from Canada’s Alimentation Couche-Tard. The company, which owns the 7-Eleven convenience stores, said it is still having constructive discussions with Couche-Tard.
That was contrary to a report in the Yomiuri daily earlier Tuesday that said Seven & I plans to reject the takeover proposal over antitrust concerns in the U.S. The news dragged the company’s stock lower by as much as 11.7%, and it was still trading down by 7.8% after the denial as investors remained watchful of Seven & I’s stance.
The valuation of the company has plunged in the past weeks to around ¥5.2 trillion, and is close to erasing gains it notched since the takeover proposal by Couche-Tard became public in August.
The Seven & I takeover saga is being closely watched as a test case of Japan’s openness to foreign capital, after recent governance reforms banned corporations from ignoring overtures that may raise value for shareholders.
Shares also plunged last week when a proposal to take the company private by its founding family and Itochu — designed to fend off Couche-Tard — collapsed.
Yomiuri had reported earlier that the Japanese retailer will instead seek to boost valuation on its own after a management buyout by the founding Ito family was scrapped.
While it seems clear that the management wants to remain independent, investors are starting to get tired of holding the stock without some kind of returns, said Amir Anvarzadeh, Japan equity strategist at Asymmetric Advisors.
"Although I think that mainly means Seven & I will be speeding up the restructuring and most likely to raise shareholders payout, investors want a quick buck and are likely to sell the name and move on if there’s no event,” he said.
Full story Seven & I shares fall amid report it may reject buyout offer - The Japan Times
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