Grocery warehouse retailer Smart & Final acquired for $812.9 million

Grocery warehouse retailer Smart & Final acquired for $812.9 million Los Angeles-based grocery warehouse retailer Smart & Final has been acquired by an affiliate of the private equity group Apollo Management for $22 per share in cash which, including debt obligations of $74 million, gives the deal a total enterprise value of $812.9 million.
   French multinational Casino Guichard-Perrachon, which owns a 55 percent stake in Smart & Final, has agreed to sell its holdings at the offered $22-per-share price. The move is part of Casino's strategy to refocus on its most promising businesses and improve its financial position. The disposal will cut Casino's debt by almost $460 million.
   Smart & Final operates 253 cash-and-carry stores on the West Coast. It is listed on the New York Stock Exchange and had revenues of $2.1 billion in 2006 with an operating income of $42 million.
   The deal is subject to approval by Smart & Final shareholders and competition authorities.