Walgreens reportedly to settle Rite Aid investors' merger claims for $192M
Walgreens Boots Alliance has reportedly agreed to pay $192.5 million to settle a class action lawsuit by investors in Rite Aid.
The investors accused Walgreens of misleading them in 2017 about scrutiny of Walgreens' and Rite Aids' then-pending merger, according to a Reuters report.
The deal filed in Pennsylvania federal court on Wednesday is subject to approval by District Judge Jennifer Wilson, the report noted.
The Rite Aid investors sued Walgreens and its executives over statements they made about the proposed merger between the two chains, which was first announced in 2015. The lawsuit accuses Walgreens of downplaying scrutiny from U.S. antitrust regulators starting in October 2016, the report said.
[Read more: Rite Aid receives court approval of motions supporting business operations]
The report also pointed out that Walgreens ultimately scrapped the takeover plan in June 2017 after failing to win approval from the Federal Trade Commission.
"Walgreens, which operates stores under its own name as well as Boots stores in Britain and Duane Reade stores in the United States, instead bought around 42% of Rite Aid's existing stores that year for $4.38 billion," the report said.
[Read more: Rite Aid files for bankruptcy, names Jeffrey Stein as new CEO]
The settlement follows on the heels of news on Sunday that Rite Aid is filing for bankruptcy protection.
Under the current proposed bankruptcy plan, the company's shares would be dissolved with no compensation to shareholders, per the report.
A Walgreens spokesperson contacted by Drug Store News said, "We will not be commenting on this settlement."