Seven & i Holdings Co Ltd (OTC:SVNDY) postponed the planned initial public offering of its U.S. convenience store business unit, 7-Eleven Inc., to fiscal 2027 from 2026 on Thursday. The news pushed Seven & i shares down by 2.55% on the Tokyo exchange at the time of writing.
The postponement came amid the uncertainty in market conditions amid the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran that has disrupted energy supplies, reported Japan Today. Stephen Dacus, president of the conglomerate, said at a press conference that the listing of its U.S. convenience store business will proceed once the market conditions improve in the country.
The Japanese company plans to raise 2 trillion yen ($12.6 billion) through the IPO and use it to buy back its own shares. The IPO plan was part of a restructuring triggered by Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc.'s unsolicited takeover proposal in 2024, reported Bloomberg.
Seven & i Holdings acquired Speedway LLC in 2021 to expand its footprint in North America after a saturated domestic market. Last year, it completed the sale of the struggling Ito-Yokado supermarket chain to a U.S. private equity firm. The company also managed to fend off a takeover attempt from Canadian retailer Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc., which operates the Circle K convenience store chain.
Weaker Annual Profit Outlook Forces IPO Delay
On Thursday, Seven & i Holdings reported dismal sales for the fiscal year ended February and provided a weak outlook for the new fiscal year. Annual revenues dropped 12.9% year-over year to JPY 10.430 trillion ($65.42 billion) while net profit rose 69.2% year-over-year to JPY 292.76 billion ($1.84 billion) . For the new fiscal year that began in March, the company projects revenue to decline 9.4% to JPY 9.448 trillion ($59.35 billion) and net profit to fall 7.8% to JPY 270 billion ($1.7 billion).
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