Barnes & Noble, the bookseller that has struggled, received a takeover bid from G Asset Management LLC for 51% of the business for $22 per share, which puts a value on the company of $1.32 billion.
G Asset also has proposed the purchase of 51% of the Nook e-book division of Barnes & Noble for $5 per share, as alternative to the other.
The offer said the company was confident that separating the company would unlock significant shareholder value.
The investment company has pushed B&N to spin off the Nook division for the past 3 years. The announcement sent the shares of the company up by 14% in trading during the day on Friday. However, it was unclear how serious of an offer it is, said one Wall Street analyst.
The analyst said it was uncertain if financing was in place or if the offer was real at the current time. B&N said the analyst has previously tried to sell its business but could not come to an agreement on the price of the assets and therefore we are not sure if the current offer is agreeable to them.
A spokesperson for B&N, based in New York, said the company was in receipt of the offer, but declined to make a further comment.
Michael Glickstein the founder of G Asset said in an interview that he could not make a comment regarding the financing for a possible deal.
After a surge at midday of the B&N stock, thanks to the statement by G Asset, the stock then pared its gains. B&N stock ended the day on Friday at $17.69, which was up over 5%. Thus far, this year, the stock has increased by 18%.
Glickstein announced two years ago that he held a stake of 5% in B&N.
The current offer by G Asset for the 51% of B&N would cost $673 million. Without any demonstration of clear funding, it is difficult to see a deal happening, said on Wall Street analyst.
