Possible Seven & i takeover 'historic' for corporate Japan, Artisan's Herrick says (updated)

Artisan Partners Asset Management

28/08/2024 04:30

(Adds response from Seven & i in 5th paragraph)
       TOKYO, Aug 27 (Reuters) - Japan's Seven & i Holdings
 3382.T  must act fast to negotiate a takeover bid from Canada's
Alimentation Couche-Tard  ATD.TO  that has "historic
implications", said a fund manager at shareholder Artisan
Partners Asset Management  APAM.N . 
    Couche-Tard, owner of Circle-K convenience stores, last week
said it had approached Seven & i about a possible acquisition.
It did not disclose a potential deal value, but a deal would
likely be the biggest-ever overseas buyout of a Japanese firm.
    Artisan has been a critic of Seven & i's management and
structure since 2019. It said it is an active - not activist -
shareholder which engages with corporate management and boards.
    Fund manager Ben Herrick said Seven & i's board should
negotiate with Couche-Tard while the offer remains friendly to
increase the chances of a positive outcome for stakeholders.
    Herrick declined comment on whether his fund has been in
contact with Seven & i management. Seven & i, which operates the
global 7-Eleven convenience store chain, said it does not
comment on individual shareholders.
    "The most important part of this deal, for both the
reputation of the board and for corporate Japan, is that
shareholders receive a fair, independently managed process,"
Herrick, associate portfolio manager of Artisan's International
Value team, said in an emailed response to questions from
Reuters. 
    "The outcome of this process has potentially historic
implications," Herrick said.
    U.S.-based Artisan holds 0.85% of Seven & i's outstanding
shares, LSEG data showed. Bloomberg News earlier reported on the
fund's views on the bid.
    Artisan, as well as activist investors Third Point and
ValueAct Capital, have criticised Seven & i for low returns and
questioned its corporate governance.
    Herrick said Artisan's efforts helped bring about an
independent board and chairman at Seven & i that can hold
management accountable and "realise the value of this
world-class asset".
    "We did not arrive at this juncture because corporate
oversight and capital allocation were best in class," he said.

 (Reporting by Rocky Swift; Editing by Miral Fahmy and
Christopher Cushing)
 ((rocky.swift@thomsonreuters.com;))