US: Judge grants FTC request to stop Sysco merger with US Foods

Sysco Corp’s $3.5 billion merger with US Foods should be stopped for further review, a federal judge ruled on Tuesday, handing a major victory to the U.S. government in its effort to block the controversial merger.

The judge’s decision could ultimately kill the deal between the two largest U.S. food distributors since the further review requested by the Federal Trade Commission is a lengthy process, and deals generally cannot be held together during a full trial.

Sysco Chief Executive Officer Bill DeLaney said the company was “profoundly disappointed” with the judge’s decision to grant the FTC a preliminary injunction putting the proposed merger on pause.

“Nevertheless, we certainly understood this outcome to be possible and have been developing plans for the business moving forward. We will take a few days to closely review the Court’s ruling and assess our legal and contractual obligations, including the merits of terminating the merger agreement,” said DeLaney.

US Foods Chief Executive Officer John Lederer said that his company was “ready for whatever comes next.”

Full content: The Wall Street Journak

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