Woolworths sells remaining stake in Endeavour Group for $383m

Woolworths Group has divested its final shareholding in Endeavour Group, the owner of Dan Murphy's and BWS liquor stores.

Transaction snapshot

• Deal value: $383 million

• Deal multiples: N/A

• Deal type: Block trade

• Investors: N/A

Goldman Sachs managed the block trade on Friday night, offering 73.3 million shares at $5.23 each. This price was 2.1% below the stock's last closing price. The sale represents about 4.1% of Endeavour Group.

This move follows Woolworths' earlier divestments in Endeavour. In April, the company sold $468 million worth of shares at $5.36 each through Jarden. Before that, UBS handled a $636 million stake sale in December 2022, which Woolworths used to acquire pet goods retailer PETstock.

Woolworths' decision to exit completely comes after Endeavour's recent announcement of weaker-than-expected trading in its retail liquor network. In the first seven weeks of the 2024-25 financial year, sales grew by only 0.6% in the retail business and 2% in Endeavour's pubs.

Last year, Endeavour faced criticism from major shareholder Bruce Mathieson over its performance and returns. Mathieson's attempt to remove the board was unsuccessful, but his son, Bruce Mathieson Jr, left the board with his replacement yet to be named.

Endeavour has recently appointed a new chairman, Ari Mervis, who took over from Peter Hearl this year, responding to pressure from the elder Mathieson.

Spun off from Woolworths in 2021, Endeavour Group operates more than 1,700 BWS and Dan Murphy's stores, 354 pubs, and six wineries. The company's shares closed at $5.34 on Friday before the trade was announced.