# Staples to buy Office Depot. Anti-trust issues? Stock Holders win or lose?



## WhatInThe (Feb 7, 2015)

Staples to buy out Office Depot who bought out Office Max a year or two ago. Apparently at the behest of a major Staples investor.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/activ...ies-like-staples--office-depot-175426866.html

http://www.fool.com/investing/gener...s-inc-investors-shouldnt-be-sold-on-6-bi.aspx

Both Staples and Office Depot shareholders could lose out. Office Depot shareholders lose immediate getting 2/10 of a Staples share for every Office Depot share.

There are possible anti trust issues and a merger was denied in 1997 for that very reason.

http://www.nytimes.com/1997/07/01/business/office-depot-and-staples-merger-halted.html

Here we would lose out because Staples is more expensive than Office Depot on many things. The electronics or office equipment market is the game now a days ie computers, printers etc. Staples can't even compete online with Amazon so what would a merger do now as pointed out by skeptics. Staples would be the only brick and mortar office supply store in the area, how is that not a monopoly. Many areas of the country will see the same scenario.


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