Family Dollar Stores Inc. (NYSE:FDO) had its strongest sales increase in 13 months. The company’s sales rose 3% during the February quarter, with profits and sales meeting forecasts. The company will be merged with Dollar Tree Inc. (NASDAQ:DLTR) in an $8.5 billion dollar merger. Dollar Tree expects the merger to be completed by May, but both companies are waiting for regulatory approval.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced that Dollar Tree will need to divest 340 stores before the takeover will be approved. The company states that nearly all of the divested stores will come from the Family Dollar brand.
Family Dollar states that March sales were even more promising for the company and rose to 3.7%. Sales in February were affected by bad weather and storms that kept a lot of customers out of the company’s stores.
The merger will put Dollar Tree at the top of the market with annual sales exceeding $18 billion dollars. Combined, the company will now control 13,000+ stores. The company’s biggest competition will be Dollar General (DG), a company that operates 11,800 stores and expects to build 700 stores this year alone.
Family Dollar’s stock is up 0.75% and Dollar Tree’s stock is up 2.72% to $82.77 a share.
