Marketing

Kroger buying Albertsons for $20B

Photo by istock.com

October 14, 2022

The two top U.S. supermarket chains, Kroger Co. and Albertsons Cos., are joining up in a $20 billion deal.

Kroger will buy Albertsons for $20 billion, which is a per share price of $34.10 and will also take on $4.7 billion of Albertsons debt.

The news, reported by New York Post, comes at a time when consumers are battling inflationary prices at the grocery store. The deal will very likely draw regulatory scrutiny as the chains operate in many of the same regions such as Chicago and Southern California, according to a Wall Street Journal report.

A combined grocery operation is a a very competitive move against Walmart, Target and Amazon. Kroger runs 2,700 stores and Albertsons has about 2,300 stores. Both also have secondary grocery brands.