ATLANTA, Aug. 27 Home Depot Inc. will sell its wholesale supply business to a U.S. private-equity group for some $2 billion less than the original price, reports said Monday.
The $8.5 billion deal, 18 percent less than the $10.3 billion agreed to in June when the buyout boom was at its peak, also includes Home Depot guaranteeing $1 billion of the debt the buyers will take on to complete the transaction, The Wall Street Journal and New York Times reported.
The world's largest home improvement store chain will retain a 12.5 percent stake in the HD Supply unit, whose business is tied closely to the struggling U.S. housing market, the Journal reported.
Home Depot's board approved the debt-heavy deal Sunday. The company planned to announce the transaction Monday.
Home Depot, of Atlanta, had no immediate comment.
Copyright 2007 by UPI
