David Moin
4 min read
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It’s a new era for Nordstrom Inc. and the Nordstrom family.
Brothers Erik and Pete Nordstrom and their cousin Jamie, along with El Puerto de Liverpool, finalized their $6.25 billion, all-cash acquisition of the department store chain on Tuesday.
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With the completion of the transaction, which was expected, the Nordstroms now have a 50.1 percent controlling stake in the company, and Liverpool has a 49.9 percent stake. Nordstrom is based in Seattle, and Liverpool is based in the Santa Fe section of Mexico City.
In addition, Erik and Pete became co-chief executive officers, and the company’s stock will stop trading and be delisted from the New York Stock Exchange on Wednesday. Erik Nordstrom was the sole CEO before, and Pete was president and chief brand officer. Jamie Nordstrom continues as chief merchandising officer.
The deal, at $24.25 per share, represents a premium of about 42 percent to the company’s unaffected closing stock price on March 18, 2024, the last trading day before media speculation about a deal.
Shareholders of the company will also be paid cash dividends of 25 cents per share and 14.62 cents per share, reflecting the special cash dividend and a “stub period” quarterly dividend. A majority of the shareholders approved the deal last week during a virtual meeting.
“The completion of this transaction is an important milestone in our nearly 125-year history,” Erik Nordstrom said in a statement. “As we embark on this new chapter, we remain focused on what matters most — providing outstanding service, offering the best merchandise, and ultimately, helping our customers feel good and look their best. We’re grateful to our teams for their hard work on behalf of our business and our customers, and we look forward to building on Nordstrom’s strong foundation to reach even greater heights.”
“Since our founding, Nordstrom’s commitment to our customers has been at the heart of everything we do,” Pete Nordstrom said. “We’re excited to enter this next phase of the company’s evolution with the many customers and employees who have been an instrumental part of our story.”
To help pull off the deal, the Nordstroms borrowed $450 million from a $1.2 billion asset-backed loan. The deal was also funded by equity from the Nordstrom family and Liverpool, cash from Liverpool, and Nordstrom’s cash reserves. Nordstrom already had $2.7 billion in debt.
