Burger King has completed its deal with a London-based SPAC and gone public:
Burger King Rejoins the Public Markets
By MICHAEL J. DE LA MERCED
DealBook
New York Times
June 20, 2012, 1:39 pm
Burger King completed its latest flip on Wednesday, rejoining the public markets after closing a deal to merge with an investment vehicle whose backers include the hedge fund manager William A. Ackman.
The fast-food chain — now officially known as Burger King Worldwide — has claimed the ticker symbol “BKW” on the New York Stock Exchange. As of midday on Wednesday, its shares traded at $14.95, up more than 3 percent.
Company officials rang the Big Board’s opening bell on Wednesday morning, wearing Burger King’s well-known paper crowns. (It’s unknown whether they later celebrated with a round of Bacon Sundaes.)
Burger King is returning to the market through a combination with Justice Holdings, a so-called blank-check company run by Nicolas Berggruen and Martin Franklin. Formally known as a special purpose acquisition vehicle, it is essentially a shell company with a stock listing that aims to find and merge with a privately held corporation. Such entities essentially give private companies a quick and easy way to enter the public markets.
It’s the second time this decade that Burger King has been taken private only to rejoin the public markets. The company was sold in 2002 to a private equity consortium that included TPG and Bain Capital, and traded on the New York Stock Exchange four years later.
In 2010, Burger King was acquired by 3G Capital, a private equity firm based backed by some of Brazil’s wealthiest investors. The investment firm aimed to stage a turnaround for the company, which had fallen behind rivals like McDonald’s.
Under 3G, the chain has begun to show some signs of improvement. Last month, Burger King said that both comparable-store sales and net income had risen in the first quarter of the year, buoyed by a revamping of company stores and menus.
dealbook.nytimes.com |
