Canada-based company makes hostile takeover bid for Casey's

Canadian convenience store giant Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. announced a hostile takeover bid Wednesday, June 2, for Ankeny-based Casey's General Stores Inc.

The offer followed Couche-Tard's disclosure in April of its friendly takeover offer to the Casey's General Stores board of directors.

Ankeny-based Casey's advised shareholders not to take any action in response to the Canadian chain's offer.

Casey's previously rejected the $36 per offer as too low. The Casey's General Stores Board of Directors planned to review the offer and make a recommendation to shareholders within 10 business days.

The offer of $36 per share is a 14 percent premium over the closing price of $31.59 per share of Casey's on April 8, 2010, the last trading day before the public disclosure of Couche-Tard's proposal, and a 24 percent premium over the one-year average closing share price of Casey's stock.

Unless Casey's agrees to merger negotiations, Couche-Tard said it would nominate, and solicit proxies for the election of a slate of nine independent directors for election to the board of directors of Casey's at the 2010 annual meeting of shareholders of Casey's.

“We continue to believe that a combination of Casey's and Couche-Tard is compelling and would deliver superior value to our respective shareholders, employees, business partners and other constituencies,” said Alain Bouchard, President and CEO of Couche-Tard.

Bouchard termed it “unfortunate” that Casey's rejected the previous offer without negotiations, saying Couche-Tard would greatly prefer to work out an agreement with Casey's.

The offer expires at midnight Friday, July 9.

Couche-Tard is the largest convenience store chain in North America, with 5,883 locations.

Casey's General Stores owns and operates 1,513 stores.