Aldeasa shareholders accept takeover bid

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Autogrill and Altadis joint-venture to take control of Aldeasa after overwhelming acceptance from Aldeasa shareholders

Aldeasa has a new owner following shareholders' acceptance of Autogrill subsidiary Retail Airport Finance's €36.57 ($47.49) per-share bid for the Spanish travel retailer. Spanish stock market regulator CNMV announced that shareholders owning 95.89% of Aldeasa—including the 34.58% holding that Altadis has agreed to exchange for a 50% stake in RAF—accepted the offer by the midnight deadline last Thursday (April 14).

The deal creates a new power in travel-retail, combining Aldeasa's broad network of stores in Spain, Latin America and the Caribbean with Autogrill's travel-catering business in Europe and its travel-retail and catering operations through subsidiary HMSHost in North America and Europe.

Retail Airport Finance, which increased its bid from €33 ($42.86) in the sealed-bid stage of the Aldeasa auction, was left as sole contender for the company after Dufry Group and the GEA consortium refused to raise their bids and withdrew from the process.