Deals
Apollo Said to Buy Claire’s Bonds as Interest Payment Looms
- Purchases were designed to help preserve firm’s investment
- Private equity owner said to have bought ’17 bonds at discount
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Claire’s Stores Inc. owner Apollo Global Management LLC is buying up the retailer’s bonds due next year, in a move that gives the company more time to turn around its ailing business, according to people with knowledge of the matter.
The private equity firm, which together with Claire’s already owns 90 percent of the chain’s 10.5 percent 2017 bonds after a debt exchange deal struck this month, has been seeking to purchase the remainder of the bonds, said one of the people. The firm has been buying at a discount in the open market, said the person, who asked not to be identified because the matter is private.