RITE AID IN TALKS WITH LONGS, OTHER FIRMS OVER SITES.Byline: Shade Elam Bloomberg News Rite Aid Rite Aid (NYSE: RAD) is a United States retailer and pharmacy chain, operating over 5,000 stores in 31 states and the District of Columbia. Rite Aid Corporation is one of the nation's leading drugstore chains. Corp., the No. 3 U.S. drugstore chain, held discussions with Longs Drug Stores Corp. and a few other companies about selling as many as 200 to 250 stores on the West Coast, analysts said. The stores, larger than a typical Rite Aid, would likely fetch between $450 million and $500 million, analysts said. They are located mainly in California and were acquired by Rite Aid when the retailer paid $2.41 billion in stock and debt for more than 1,000 Thrifty PayLess Thrifty PayLess Holdings, Inc. was a pharmacy holding company that owned the Thrifty Drugs and PayLess Drug Store chains in the western United States. The combined company was formed when Los Angeles-based TCH Corporation, the parent company of stores in December 1996. Longs is one of several companies that may be interested in the stores, though it may only be willing to buy about 50 locations, said analyst Eric Bosshard of Midwest Research. Rite Aid needs the money to pay off debt for its January purchase of pharmacy benefits manager PCS (1) (Personal Communications Services) Refers to wireless services that emerged after the U.S. government auctioned commercial licenses in 1994 and 1995. This radio spectrum in the 1. Health Systems Inc., analysts said. ``I think they'd (sell the stores) piecemeal piecemeal patchy, e.g. necrosis of the liver in which groups of hepatocytes are separated by small groups of inflammatory cells and fine, fibrous septa following extension of the inflammatory process beyond the limiting plate. if that's what it took to get it done,'' said Bosshard, who rates Rite Aid a ``market perform.'' The stores that are up for sale average 30,000 to 40,000 square feet. In contrast, Rite Aid's other stores on the West Coast average about 15,000 to 20,000 square feet, and its East Coast stores average about 10,000 square feet, Bosshard said. The stores that Longs may consider buying are located in Washington and Oregon, he said. Other larger-format stores are located in Utah, Idaho, Colorado and California. Longs, based in Walnut Creek Walnut Creek, residential city (1990 pop. 60,569), Contra Costa co., W Calif., in the San Francisco Bay area; inc. 1914. It is the trade and shipping center of an extensive agricultural area where walnuts are among the major product. , Calif., has about 380 stores in California, Hawaii, Washington, Nevada, Colorado and Oregon. Officials at Longs couldn't be reached for comment. Rite Aid declined to comment. The stores also have been speculated as takeover targets Takeover target A company that is the object of a takeover attempt, friendly or hostile. takeover target See target company. for J.C. Penney Co.'s Eckerd chain and Safeway Inc. Rite Aid said Wednesday it was in talks about possible transactions that analysts said may lead to the sale of some of its stores or the whole chain. While Longs and Eckerd may be interested in the stores, drugstore chains generally are considered less likely buyers than supermarkets, which would welcome the larger-store formats and wouldn't have antitrust Antitrust The antitrust laws apply to virtually all industries and to every level of business, including manufacturing, transportation, distribution, and marketing. They prohibit a variety of practices that restrain trade. issues, analysts said. |
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