LaCrosse Footwear Pops 81% on Buyout

Shares of LaCrosse Footwear BOOT are seeing increased strength during Friday's trading session after ABC-Mart announced yesterday it would acquire LaCrosse Footwear for $20 per share in cash, valuing the company at $138 million. The purchase price represents a premium of 82% over LaCrosse Footwear's average closing stock price over the last 30 days ended July 5, 2012, and an 82% premium over the closing price on July 5, 2012. Under the agreement, ABC-MART will commence a tender offer to purchase all of the outstanding shares of LaCrosse Footwear. The transaction is expected to close in the third calendar quarter of 2012. “We are very pleased to join with LaCrosse Footwear, which further positions the company and its strong brands for long-term growth worldwide,” said Minoru Noguchi, President of ABC-MART. “We associate significant value with the LaCrosse® and Danner® brands, as well as with the company's outstanding channel partners and proven commitment to operational excellence. We look forward to working with LaCrosse Footwear management and building on the company's reputation and commitment to outstanding quality, performance and innovation to foster long-term growth and success.” Currently, shares of LaCrosse Footwear are trading up over 81 percent at $19.88 per share.