Whole Foods investor ups stake, pushes for sale
According to Reuters, Jana Partners has upped its stake in Whole Foods Market as the hedge fund looks to shake up the board and senior management of the high-end grocer and push for a sale of the company.
According to Reuters, Jana Partners has upped its stake in Whole Foods Market as the hedge fund looks to shake up the board and senior management of the high-end grocer and push for a sale of the company. Whole Foods’ shares, which have lost nearly half their value since early 2015, jumped almost 10% after Jana announced an 8.3% stake in Whole Foods in a regulatory filing on April 10, up from the 7.15% it held at the end of March.
The New York-based activist investor said in its filing that it had started a review of strategic options for Whole Foods considering the company’s “apparent unwillingness to engage in discussions with third parties regarding such alternatives.” The filing also disclosed that Jana plans to “internalize grocery distribution and limit the influence of its primary wholesale distribution partner,” United Natural Foods, which in turn relies on Whole Foods for about a third of its sales.
In February, Whole Foods cut its full-year sales and profit forecasts after posting its sixth straight quarter of same-store sales declines. In addition to closing stores and centralizing its business, Whole Foods now is working with Dunnhumby, a consumer data subsidiary of Tesco, in a bid to catch up with Kroger and other rivals that already use such information to improve merchandising and personalize offers to loyal customers.