1157 ET - The Federal Trade Commission's move to block Tempur Sealy's acquisition of Mattress Firm was "expected," but Wedbush analysts maintain their view of a better-than-50% chance that the lawsuit is unsuccessful. "Vertical mergers are harder to challenge on anti-competitive ground" the analysts say in a note, citing Microsoft's Activision buy and AT&T's Time Warner purchase. In their view, the bedding industry will still remain significantly fragmented following the proposed deal. "Further, we note TPX has successfully negotiated post-closing long-term supply agreements with six of the seven suppliers it has reached out to" and has used multiple vendors with retailers it has acquired in Europe. Shares decline 2.4% to $47.17. (emon.reiser@wsj.com)
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
July 03, 2024 11:57 ET (15:57 GMT)
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