New York: JAB Holding Co. agreed to buy Panera Bread Co. for about $7.5bn, adding a fast-growing US bakery chain to a food empire that spans coffee, bagels and doughnuts.
The planned purchase by JAB, an investment vehicle of Austria’s billionaire Reimann family, steps up its challenge to Nestle SA and Starbucks Corp. in the coffee-shop business, giving it greater access to the lunch and dinner crowd. In addition to sandwiches and salads, Panera offers drinks like iced caramel lattes and agave lemonade.
Panera investors will receive $315 per share in cash, the companies said in a statement yesterday. That’s 20 percent higher than the closing price on March 31.
“We are pleased to join with JAB, a private investor with an equally long-term perspective, as well as a deep commitment to our strategic plan,” Panera founder Ron Shaich said in the statement.
The agreement, which includes assumption of $340m in debt, values Panera at 19 times earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, compared with nine times Ebitda for comparable deals, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Panera shares rose as much as 13 perecnt to $310 in pre-market trading.
Panera adds another US brand to JAB’s growing caffeine roster, which includes Stumptown Coffee Roasters, Keurig Green Mountain, and Peet’s Coffee & Tea. JAB has expanded its coffee business rapidly after an initial 2012 purchase of a stake in Amsterdam-based D.E Master Blenders 1753 NV, the maker of Senseo and Douwe Egberts brands.
