More IHOP for your morning
Daily News biz-maven Julia Scott delves into the IHOP-Applebees proposal...
GLENDALE -- IHOP said Monday that it would buy Applebee's for $2.1 billion in cash as part of a plan to revive the bar-and-grill chain.
The $25.50-per-share deal offers shareholders a small premium over the recent trading price of Applebee's stock. The stock rose to $24.91 on news of the deal.
IHOP stock rose almost 9 percent, to $61.24, after news of the acquisition broke.
IHOP chief Julia Stewart plans to sell nearly all of Applebee's company-owned restaurants to individual franchise owners to boost cash flow and stock prices, a strategy she used to help breathe new life into the pancake chain.
Of the 1,319 IHOP eateries across the globe, 99 percent are franchises. Nearly 75 percent of Applebee's 1,943 locations are franchises.
"We've been down this road before and successfully led a total business transformation," Stewart said during a conference call. "We plan to do it again with Applebee's."
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