Change of Plans Around Walgreens & Rite-Aid Merger

DEERFIELD, Ill. — Walgreens Boots Alliance is scrapping its proposed $9.4-billion deal to buy Rite Aid Corp.

Instead, the retailer has inked a new agreement to purchase nearly half of Rite Aid’s stores. Walgreens has agreed to pay Rite Aid $5.16 billion in cash for 2,186 of its 4,153 stores, as well as a $325 million termination fee.

The deal is expected to close within the next six months following Federal Trade Commission (FTC) approval, at which point the drugstore chain will begin acquiring Rite Aid’s assets and converting locations to the Walgreens banner.

Plans for a merger between Deerfield-based Walgreens and Rite Aid, which is based in Camp Hill, Pa., lagged for more than a year after it was announced due to scrutiny from the FTC over antitrust concerns. To ease FTC concerns, Walgreens agreed to divest 865 store locations in the eastern and western United States to Fred’s Pharmacy, as CSNews Online previously reported. That deal has now been terminated.

To read the full story, visit Convenience Store News sister publication Path to Purchase Institute.