DALLAS — 7-Eleven, Inc. (NYSE: SE) has acquired the ATMs currently deployed in 7-Eleven stores from American Express Company for a purchase price of approximately $44 million.
The purchase involves ATMs offered in 5,483 company-operated, franchised and certain licensed 7-Eleven stores in the United States, according to a news release.
"ATM services are an important offering for the convenience customer, and we believe this acquisition will complement our strategy to accelerate growth in the area of financial services," said Jim Keyes, 7-Eleven's president and chief executive officer. "Control of the ATMs will allow us to better integrate this valuable service into our overall merchandising efforts within the store."
According to 7-Eleven's senior vice president and chief financial officer, Ed Moneypenny, the company believes the acquisition will add approximately 2 cents per diluted share to 2004 earnings. As a result, 7-Eleven is raising its core earnings guidance for 2004 to a revised range of 90 cents to 94 cents EPS.
For 2003, the convenience store chain's core earnings totaled $88.8 million, or 78 cents a share.
Because of this acquisition, the company is increasing its capital spending guidance for 2004 to a range of $360 million to $390 million from its previously disclosed guidance of $345 million to $375 million," Moneypenny said. The company's capital spending totaled $338 million in 2003.
American Express in 2000 had more than 8,600 ATMs in 47 states under contract, following its purchase of 6,500 ATMs from EDS, as well as some smaller ATM portfolios. Shortly after that, it began divesting machines. By July of 2003, it had 7,400 ATMs under contract; it sold 1,700 machines and related placement contracts to Cardtronics last August.
