Panera Bread Co. Has Been Sold For $7.5 Billion To JAB Holdings

Written by StockNews.com

It was announced this morning that Panera Bread Co (Nasdaq: PNRA) has been acquired by JAB Holdings for about $7.5 billion.

The $315 per share buyout price represents a 20% premium over PNRA’s Friday closing price around $262. That was the last day before information about a potential buyout leaked to the public. Both Panera and JAB noted that the takeover price is actually about 30% over the stock’s 30-day volume-weighted average stock price as of the end of March.

Although already unanimously approved by PNRA’s board of directors, the companies said that certain other conditions still apply:

The transaction is not subject to a financing condition and is expected to close during the third quarter of 2017, subject to the approval of Panera shareholders and the satisfaction of customary closing conditions, including applicable regulatory approvals.

...Luxembourg-based JAB Holdings, the investment vehicle of Germany's billionaire Reimann family, owns a slew of coffee-related assets already, including Krispy Kreme Doughnuts, K-cup coffee pod-maker Keurig Green Mountain Inc., Peets Coffee & Tea, and many more. The secretive holding company now looks set to take on Starbucks directly with this latest move.

Panera has 2,000 bakery cafes throughout the United States and its fresh offerings appeal to health-conscious consumers. The St. Louis-based company has reported better-than-expected earnings per share for the last six quarters.

JAB became the world's largest pure-play coffee maker by volume in 2015, when its created Jacobs Douwe Egberts in Europe, a joint venture that combined its D.E. Master Blenders 1753 business with the coffee business of U.S.-based Mondelez International Inc (MDLZ.O 1.71%).

...Year-to-date, PNRA has gained 33.60%, versus a 5.80% rise in the benchmark S&P 500 index during the same period.

PNRA currently has a StockNews.com POWR Rating of A (Strong Buy), and is ranked #7 of 53 stocks in the Restaurants category.