Sysco To Buy U.K.-based Brakes Group For $3.1 Billion, Including Debt

Sysco Corp. announced Monday an agreement to buy London-based foodservice distributor Brakes Group in a deal valued at the U.S. dollar equivalent of $3.1 billion (2.2 billion British pounds). The deal includes the repayment of about $2.3 billion worth of Brakes' debt. Sysco said it expects the deal to close before the end of its fiscal year in July 2016, and is expected to immediately add to earnings. Brakes had revenue in fiscal 2015 of nearly $5 billion. "This transaction will unite Sysco with a leading foodservice distributor in Europe with demonstrated capability to sustainably grow its business over time," said Sysco Chief Executive Bill DeLaney. The stock, which was still inactive in premarket trade, has climbed 9.7% year to date, while the S&P 500 has lost 6.2%.