Ascena Retail Group to Acquire Ann Taylor
Posted on May 19, 2015
The Ascena Retail Group has announced plans to acquire Ann Taylor in a deal worth $2.15 billion. Ann Taylor shares were up on news of the deal, which was announced on Monday. Ascena owns other clothing brands, including Dressbran, Lane Bryant and Catherines.
The deal has Ann Inc. shareholders receiving $37.34 in cash and 0.68 of an Ascena share for each share of Ann Inc. common stock they own. The L.A. Times reports that the offer is 21.4% higher than the closing price of Ann Inc. shares on Friday.
Bloomberg reports that Ann Taylor's recently struggles are partly due to workplace attire becoming more casual. Actress Kate Hudson has been the face of the brand in recent years. Ann Taylor collaborated with Kate on an LBD collection last year. The company did not run a celebrity campaign this spring possibly due to the merger plans. Kate is pictured surrounded by papers in a previous Ann Taylor campaign.
Ann Taylor CEO Kay Krill said in a statement, "I am very proud of all we have accomplished and confident that combining with ascena is the right next step for ANN INC. The transaction will make us part of a larger organization with a diversified portfolio of brands focused on the women's apparel market, a strong operating platform and a powerful financial base. I have tremendous respect and admiration for ascena's CEO David Jaffe, and our management team and I look forward to working alongside him and other senior members of the ascena team."