Pep Boys agrees to be acquired by Icahn for $1 billion

Pep Boys agrees to be acquired by Icahn for $1 billion

NEW YORK

Carl Icahn is acquiring Pep Boys for $1 billion, ending his weekslong bidding war with the Japanese tire company Bridgestone.

The deal announced Wednesday is expected to close in the first quarter of next year.

Icahn Enterprises offered $18.50 in cash for each share of Pep Boys, $1.50 more per share than the most-recent offer from Bridgestone. With the contest becoming too rich, Bridgestone bowed out Tuesday.

Philadelphia-based Pep Boys – Manny, Moe & Jack operates more than 800 locations around the country that sell auto parts, fixes vehicles and offer other services. The company’s tire business has been under pressure, and it has looked for new ways to generate cash.

With the end of the bidding war, shares of Pep Boys fell 55 cents, or 3 percent, to close Wednesday at $18.39. Icahn Enterprises LP rose 60 cents, or 1 percent, to $62.12.

Pending home sales slipped in November

WASHINGTON

Fewer people signed contracts to purchase homes in November, as the real- estate market appears to have cooled after sales gains for much of 2015.

The National Association of Realtors said Wednesday that its seasonally adjusted pending home-sales index fell 0.9 percent to 106.9 last month. It was the lowest reading in 10 months. Still, the index has risen 2.7 percent from a year ago.

Steady hiring and low mortgage rates lifted home sales for much of this year. But the pace of buying slowed after the end of the summer, with inventories tight and home values rising faster than incomes. Signed contracts last month fell in the Northeast and West market, while rising slightly in the Midwest and South.

Pending sales are a barometer of future purchases. A lag of a month or two usually exists between a contract and a completed sale.

The decline in contracts occurred as finalized sales are slowing.

Russia’s ruble hits lowest level in year

MOSCOW

The Russian ruble has hit its lowest level in a year against the dollar as the country’s economy is battered by a decline in the price of its oil exports.

The ruble dropped 1.3 percent in early morning trading on Wednesday to 73.2 rubles per dollar, its weakest level in about 12 months. The national currency lost 40 percent of its value last year and now is 20 percent down compared with a year ago.

The Russian economy has been suffering from the effects of Western economic sanctions and oil prices, the backbone of the country’s economy, which are currently hovering around 11-year lows.

The Russian economic development minister said Tuesday the government is not so much concerned about the drop in the value of the ruble but rather its volatility, which makes budget planning difficult.

Associated Press