Report: Best Buy founder to make $5 billion to $6 billion buy-back bid
New York -- A Thursday report by the Minneapolis Star Tribune said that Best Buy Co. founder Richard Schulze is expected to make a fully financed offer of $5 billion to $6 billion by the end of the week to buy the retailer.
The newspaper cited an unnamed source for the report.
The bid would fall below Schulze’s August offer of up to $10.9 billion including debt.
Best Buy has not yet commented publicly on the report.
Schulze will meet with his top advisers, including Brad Anderson, a former Best Buy CEO, and Al Lenzmeier, a former president, in Minnesota on Thursday and Friday, the Star Tribune reported.
Schulze has said he would fund any deal through a combination of private equity and debt financing, as well as the reinvestment of some of his own equity in the company. He is Best Buy's biggest shareholder, with 20% ownership.