Is there a deal, or isn't there?
Office Depot said Wednesday it agreed to buy OfficeMax for an estimated $1.2 billion in a deal aimed at altering the balance of power in the office supply retail market.
But The New York Times' Dealbook blog has reported that the deal may have been announced prematurely, according to two people with knowledge of the matter.
The deal, one of several large-scale acquisitions announced within the last week, was buried within Office Depot's fourth quarter earnings release, which is not a typical way that companies trumpet a deal of this size. The New York Times said a press release about the merger briefly popped up on Office Depot's website, and then disappeared.
The paper said neither company was immediately available to comment. Reuters reported that a source familiar with the matter said the two companies' bankers and lawyers were still trying to finalize the deal.
The two companies are competitors to Staples, the world's largest supplier of office goods. The deal, if and when it is announced, would appear to be an attempt by both OfficeMax and Office Depot to become more competitive with Staples, even as they confront declining market share and consumers that move to buy online.
If the deal goes through as detailed, Office Depot would issue 2.69 new shares of common stock for each outstanding share of OfficeMax. That would be the equivalent of $13.50 a share, giving the deal a value of about $1.2 billion. The new company would have an equal number of Office Depot and Office Max directors on its board.
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