Investing.com - An investor consortium, including Arkhouse Management and Brigade Capital Management, has reportedly increased its acquisition offer for Macy’s Inc (NYSE:M) for the second time, according to the Wall Street Journal.
The previous proposals from these investors have not yet led to a transaction for the struggling department store chain.
The investors have reportedly augmented their bid by approximately $300 million in recent days. The new offer aims to acquire the Macy's stock that the investors do not currently own for $24.80 per share, amounting to an estimated total of $6.9 billion.
Earlier in March, the investors had increased their offer to $24 per share, or around $6.6 billion, up from the initial $21-per-share proposal submitted by Arkhouse and Brigade on December 1.
As of Wednesday's close, Macy's shares were valued at $17.93, resulting in a market capitalization of nearly $5 billion for the company. The stock has seen a decline of about 11% this year.
In April, Macy's appointed two new independent directors, ending a proxy battle with Arkhouse, which aimed to replace most of the 15-person board after its takeover offer was rejected by Macy's.
Macy's revealed in April that it was engaging with Arkhouse and Brigade on their buyout proposal and had provided them with confidential information for due diligence purposes.
In late May, Macy's reported a decline in its first-quarter sales compared to the previous year. However, the fall was less severe than Wall Street had predicted. CEO Tony Spring, former head of the Bloomingdale's chain, raised the company's outlook following these results.