Private equity company Apollo Global Management is in advanced talks to buy Europe's biggest plastics packaging maker RPC Group for more than $3.8 billion (€4.3 billion), the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday.
RPC on Friday extended the deadline to 23 January, for Apollo to make a firm offer or walk away.
Citing people familiar with the matter, the Journal said that a deal could be announced as soon as Tuesday (today).
Private Equity
Private equity has long been attracted to the sector's reliable cash flow and growing demand from online shopping, with a spate of takeovers by bigger packaging players further spurring their interest.
RPC, which operates in 34 countries, on Monday had a market capitalisation of £2.95 billion (€3.4 billion).
The company said in September of last year that it was in talks on a possible sale to Apollo and US private equity firm Bain Capital, with the deadlines to make a firm offer extended repeatedly since then.
The FTSE mid-cap company ended talks with Bain in December.
RPC declined to comment when contacted by Reuters, and Apollo could not be reached for comment outside normal business hours.
News by Reuters, edited by ESM. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
