PetSmart is being sold to investor group for $8.7B

NEW YORK — PetSmart is being sold to a group of investors led by buyout firm BC Partners for $8.7 billion.

The Phoenix-based pet store retailer says the investors have agreed to pay $83 per share in cash to the company. That’s a 39 percent increase from its closing price July 2 before the company announced it was looking to sell. The price is also a 7 percent increase from PetSmart’s closing price Friday.

In addition to BC Partners, the buyers include StepStone and Canadian pension manager La Caisse.

The sale requires approval from PetSmart shareholders.

LongView Asset Management says it will vote in favor of the deal. That fund owns 9 percent of PetSmart and had been pressuring the company to sell since the summer.

BY BERNARD CONDON, AP Business Writer