The company that owns Krispy Kreme, Caribou Coffee, and Peet's Coffee and Tea might soon add Panera Bread to the mix.
On Tuesday, Bloomberg reported that JAB Holding was in advanced talks to buy Panera, after breaking the news that Panera was for sale a day earlier.
In a note out to clients earlier Tuesday, a group of equity analysts at Credit Suisse led by Jason West said a JAB acquisition made sense.
"We believe JAB would be the most likely acquirer of PNRA given JAB’s current portfolio of coffee assets (Krispy Kreme, Keurig, Peet's, etc.)," Credit Suisse said.
JAB, theinvestment arm of the secretive Reimann family, has been busily scooping up companies in the consumer and food sectors in the past few years. It spent about $1.35 billion to buy Krispy Kreme Doughnuts in 2016. The firm also spent $13.9 billion buying home-brewing coffee company Keurig Green Mountain in late 2015.
As Business Insider's Kate Taylor reported last year, JAB poses a threat to Starbucks, which is working to boost food sales. Here's a breakdown of JAB Holdings' massive portfolio:
JAB acquired Peet's Coffee and Tea in 2012.
JAB Holdings acquired Peet's back in 2012 for about $1 billion.
It then did a deal for Caribou Coffee.
JAB also runs Caribou Coffee Co., which it acquired in 2013 for $340 million. Caribou Coffee is based in Minnesota.
Next up was D.E Master Blenders 1753
JAB struck a deal in 2013 to buy D.E. Master Blenders 1753, which had been spun out of Sara Lee Corp. a year earlier, for $9.8 billion.
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