Jollibee Foods to take control of S.Korea's Compose Coffee in $340 million deal

FILE PHOTO: Ernesto Tanmantiong, President and CEO of Jollibee Foods Corp., poses with Jollibee products outside a Jollibee branch in Pasig City, Metro Manila, Philippines, July 30, 2019. REUTERS/Eloisa Lopez/File Photo

By Neil Jerome Morales

(Reuters) - The Philippines' biggest fast-food chain Jollibee Foods will acquire a majority stake in South Korea's Compose Coffee, as part of a deal valuing the target at $340 million, the company said on Tuesday.

Jollibee's largest acquisition by number of stores continues the company's expansion overseas, which will account for majority of its branches in the future.

Jollibee's unit Jollibee Worldwide Pte will acquire 70% of privately held Compose Coffee for $238 million, and its majority-owned Titan Fund will take 5%, the fast-food firm said in a statement. The remaining 25% will be held by private equity firm Elevation, it said.

Shares in Jollibee, which has a market value of $4.29 billion, rose 0.44% on Tuesday, outpacing the 0.62% decline in the broader stock market index.

"This is a good move by Jollibee to further expand its global footprint and take advantage of attractive opportunities in promising markets," said Juan Paolo Colet, managing director at investment bank China Bank Capital in Manila. The acquisition is expected to be cash accretive, creating shareholder value over the long run, he added.

Compose Coffee has 2,470 stores, all franchised, giving it a debt-free balance sheet, and good cash returns and profit margins, said Jollibee, which will increase its global store network to 10,000 with the deal.

The investment gives Jollibee access to South Korea, which ranks third globally in terms of coffee consumption per capita, the company said.

Compose Coffee and its roasting facility were founded in Busan in 2014.

Known for its sweet-style spaghetti, burgers and fried chicken, Jollibee is dominant in the Philippines, outselling McDonald's and Yum Brands' KFC.

In 2019, Jollibee invested $100 million to acquire loss-making Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf.

($1 = 58.79 Philippine pesos)

(Reporting by Neil Jerome Morales in Manila and Shivangi Lahiri in Bengaluru; Editing by Sonia Cheema, Neil Fullick and Louise Heavens)