The parent company of 7-Eleven is on the process of acquiring gas station and retail store chain Speedway for $21 billion, via an announcement on Sunday.
7-Eleven plus Speedway
Seven & i Holdings company and petroleum refining company Marathon Petroleum Corporation both revealed the all-cash purchase after the deal was temporarily paused months ago due to the novel coronavirus outbreak. It was among the biggest acquisitions ever made since the pandemic began. Seven & i Holdings, Japan’s largest operator of convenience shops including 7-Eleven, has also mentioned it is the company’s biggest purchase in their organization’s history.
The Japanese owner of 7-Eleven is buying the Speedway chain of gas stations from Marathon Petroleum for $21 billion. https://t.co/gbaAnPOLIc
— CNN (@CNN) August 3, 2020
More stores
The Tokyo-based retail group manages 21,000 stores in Japan, plus 9,800 located in the US and Canada. With the acquisition of Speedway, it would then add 4,000 more stores to its growing businesses in North America. This move is part of Seven and i Holding’s strategy of expanding store network in that region.
Joe Depinto, president and chief executive officer of 7-Eleven, stated that the deal would allow them “to continue to grow and diversify our presence in the US, particularly in the Midwest and East Coast.” The acquisition of Speedway would provide 7-Eleven 47 of the top 50 populated metros in the US, per a press release.
The deal would also include a 15-year annual supply agreement with almost 7.7 billion gallons, which is part of the Speedway business.
Challenges
Meanwhile, it was previously reported that fuel refining and retail Marathon Petroleum had plans of spinning off its gas station chain Speedway as a way to restructuring the company. This came as activist investor Elliott Management urged the US petroleum company to split companies after unimpressive performance.
CNN Business noted that the price for the acquisition was unnerving for investors. Seven & i Holdings plunged by almost 9 percent on Tokyo trading Monday, the company’s largest slide since March’s 6 percent. However, some analysts think that it is sensible for the Japanese company to expand in North America.
The Japanese retailer’s chain of stores were also severely affected by the pandemic, with many people opting for online stores as they remain home. The company saw a 73 percent drop in profits during the March to May period of about $131 million. It also projects net profits to be down by 45 percent for the fiscal year which would end by February 2021.