Deals
Walgreen to Buy 45% Stake in Boots for $6.7 Billion
This article is for subscribers only.
Walgreen Co., the biggest U.S. drugstore chain, agreed to buy a 45 percent stake in Alliance Boots GmbH for $6.7 billion in an attempt to create a global chain of pharmacies.
Walgreen will pay $4 billion cash and the rest in stock for its biggest-ever deal, with an option to gain full control in about three years, the companies said today in a statement. The stake is being acquired from a group led by KKR & Co. and Alliance Boots Chairman Stefano Pessina, who purchased the company for 12.1 billion pounds ($19 billion) five years ago.