Oil giant BP buying major truck stop chain TravelCenters

TravelCenters of America, which operates truck stops across the country under the TA brand, is getting bought by BP America.

The price of the acquisition is approximately $1.3 billion, or $86 per share. TA stock (NASDAQ: TA) closed Wednesday at $49.44 per share, for a premium of about 84% to the closing price.

“Today’s announcement that BP is acquiring TA for $86 per share is a result of the successful implementation of our turnaround and strategic plans,” TA’s CEO Jonathan Pertchik said in a prepared statement announcing the sale. “We have improved our core travel center business, expanded our network, launched TA to prepare for the future of alternative fuels and improved our operating and financial results, none of which we could have accomplished without the hard work and dedication of our employees at every level.”

Even before the pandemic, which pushed TA’s stock price to less than $10 per share in its early days, TA had struggled, with a stock price just above $10 per share in late 2019.

The sale will mean that all three major U.S. truck stop companies — TA, Love’s and Pilot Flying J — will be privately owned, though Pilot Flying J has a 38.6% share held by Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK.A).

The sale of TA has been looming for a considerable period of time, according to the TA statement. Its statement said the sale is the “culmination of a comprehensive process by TA’s board.” That process featured “competitive rounds of bidding from potential buyers.”

FreightWaves will continue to report on this story over the course of the day.

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Source: freightwaves - Oil giant BP buying major truck stop chain TravelCenters
Editor: John Kingston