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Article: Brooks stores are sold; Rite-Aid buys 167 pharmacies.(BUSINESS)
- Article from:
- Telegram & Gazette (Worcester, MA)
- Article date:
- June 5, 2007
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2007 Worcester Telegram & Gazette. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Byline: Marc Levy
HARRISBURG, Pa. - Rite Aid Corp. said yesterday it has closed an approximately $4 billion cash-and-stock deal to add more than 1,850 Brooks and Eckerd stores - including 167 Brooks stores in Massachusetts - in a bid to keep up with its rapidly growing competitors.
The nation's third-largest drugstore chain will expand its already strong presence on the East Coast, although some analysts have criticized the price being paid for underperforming stores.
The acquisition is Rite Aid's first major deal after a turnaround team arrived in late 1999 to pull the company from the brink of bankruptcy.
"Today we are a bigger, ...