Private equity firm to buy Dollar General

Dollar General Corp. said Monday its board has agreed to a buyout offer of about $6.9 billion from the private-equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. in a deal that will take the discount retailer private.

Dollar General shareholders must still approve the deal. The company’s board is recommending that its shareholders vote for it and the company said it could close in the third quarter.

The discount retailer, based in the Nashville suburb of Goodlettsville, operates about 8,260 stores.

Under terms of the deal, Kohlberg Kravis will pay $22 per share for each Dollar General share. The price represents a 31.1 percent premium to the stock’s closing price Friday on the New York Stock Exchange.

KKR will also assume $380 million in debt as part of the deal, Dollar General said.

“We are very pleased to announce a transaction that provides excellent value for our shareholders, representing a significant premium and the certainty of cash,” said David A. Perdue, chairman and CEO of Dollar General.

Last week, Dollar General reported its February sales at stores open at least a year rose 4.9 percent, beating Wall Street forecasts for a 4.6 percent jump. Total sales for the month rose 7.8 percent to $695.6 million from $645.4 million.

For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAmerican passenger drafted goodbye texts to her family as Flydubai plane plummeted

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation pushes embattled New York prosecutor into national spotlight

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAbdul El-Sayed tries to woo MAHA voters as Democrats seek inroads with RFK’s supporters

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKratom-like substances are popping up in a typically benign supplement

FOR SUBSCRIBERSGOP super PAC increases its spending for Sen. Jon Husted in tough Ohio race

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRecords reveal tumultuous marriage between slain New York Times executive and wife

FOR SUBSCRIBERSFrom clean energy warrior to ‘wall of shame,’ James Talarico reverses on a fossil fuel money pledge

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCongressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election

FOR SUBSCRIBERSA harrowing ordeal aboard an Israel-bound plane

FOR SUBSCRIBERSOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to skip congressional hearing on rogue AI agents

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKey DOJ lawyers departed Trump ‘grand conspiracy’ probe amid pressure to produce, source says

FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump’s new AI chatbot often links to a site launched under Clinton 26 years ago

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAt MAHA summit, industry CEOs the movement once vilified take the stage

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThis Paralympian has two goals: Win medals and give away $500,000 to her teammates

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation spotlights stringent New York state laws that have long drawn criticism

The company, which has about 64,500 workers, posted 2006 earnings of $350.2 million on sales of $8.58 billion.

For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAmerican passenger drafted goodbye texts to her family as Flydubai plane plummeted

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation pushes embattled New York prosecutor into national spotlight

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAbdul El-Sayed tries to woo MAHA voters as Democrats seek inroads with RFK’s supporters

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKratom-like substances are popping up in a typically benign supplement

FOR SUBSCRIBERSGOP super PAC increases its spending for Sen. Jon Husted in tough Ohio race

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRecords reveal tumultuous marriage between slain New York Times executive and wife

FOR SUBSCRIBERSFrom clean energy warrior to ‘wall of shame,’ James Talarico reverses on a fossil fuel money pledge

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCongressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election

FOR SUBSCRIBERSA harrowing ordeal aboard an Israel-bound plane

FOR SUBSCRIBERSOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to skip congressional hearing on rogue AI agents

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKey DOJ lawyers departed Trump ‘grand conspiracy’ probe amid pressure to produce, source says

FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump’s new AI chatbot often links to a site launched under Clinton 26 years ago

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAt MAHA summit, industry CEOs the movement once vilified take the stage

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThis Paralympian has two goals: Win medals and give away $500,000 to her teammates

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation spotlights stringent New York state laws that have long drawn criticism

Dollar General in November announced plans to close 400 stores and open about 300 new locations.

The plan, which also included changing inventory management methods, was slated to cost about $138 million, with $74 million related to store closings and $64 million for higher markdowns to aid the move away from its former inventory management model as well as other expenses.

Despite the hefty markdowns, the retailer said the change would improve the appearance of its stores and ultimately result in higher sales and lower employee turnover.