BOXD - Boxed jumps on report of talks with two suitors on potential sale

Boxed ( NYSE: BOXD ) soared 35% on Thursday amid a Seeking Alpha report that the company has talked to two potential suitors about a purchase of the company.

Boxed, known as an ecommerce grocery platform that sells bulk consumables to businesses and consumers, has had talks with AEON Co. Ltd ( OTCPK:AONNY ) and at least one other suitor, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Boxed ( BOXD ) announced Jan. 3 that its board was exploring a possible sale, sending its shares soaring more than 40% that day. On Jan. 20 Boxed stock also popped 19% after announcing that it received $20 million in new financing. The company also entered into an amendment to its existing first lien debt facility with funds and accounts managed by BlackRock.

Boxed has seen its stock plunge 96% since it went public through a de-SPAC in December 2021. While Boxed ( BOXD ) was originally mainly known for shipping boxes filled with toilet paper and potato chips, the company also moved into the software-as-service or SaaS business and that business is called Spresso.

Boxed ( BOXD ) declined to comment about its sales process.

Boxed ( BOXD ) has had an ongoing relationship with AEON and in October agreed to expand a partnership it had with the Tokyo-based company. Boxed and AEON announced an agreement to launch Boxed’s end-to-end software and services platform in the Vietnamese market.

AEON owned 3.63 million shares, or a 4.9% stake, of Boxed as of last May. Boxed ( BOXD ) shares fell 7.7% in trading on Wednesday.

Boxed ( BOXD ) also disclosed in an 8-K filing earlier this month that Tsukasa Ojima, who's an executive officer at AEON, informed Boxed that he would be resign from its board immediately at least partly due to any "potential conflicts of interest" that may arise between Boxed an AEON, which is an investor and partner of Boxed.

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