A Most Interesting Acquisition Bid
The parent company of office supplies retailer and business IT services provider Staples Monday unveiled a plan to acquire rival Office Depot in a $2.1 billion deal that proposes the eventual divestiture of Office Depot’s business-to-business-focused businesses.
Staples, known officially by its corporate name of USR Parent, Monday proposed to Office Depot’s board of directors that it acquire Office Depot for $40 per share in cash, or a total of about $2.1 billion. That, Staples said, represents a 61 percent premium over Office Depot’s average closing share price over the last 90 trading days.
Staples’ bid to acquire Office Depot is interesting for several reasons. It’s not the first time the two have reached out to each other. And given the difficulties retail businesses are facing during the pandemic, it is interesting to see the focus of this bid on the retail side of the office supplies business, with Staples actually encouraging Office Depot to consider exiting its systems integration and business services businesses.
This will be an acquisition that will be discussed and haggled over for some time to come. Here are five things to know about the bid and possible outcome.
