Home Depot has secured U.S. antitrust clearance for its $5.5 billion tender offer to acquire building materials distributor GMS Inc., moving the deal a step closer to completion.
The Department of Justice granted early termination of the waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act, the companies said Thursday. The offer — $110 per share in cash — still requires approval under Canada’s Competition Act and most GMS shareholders to tender their stock.
Home Depot launched the bid through its subsidiary Gold Acquisition Sub, Inc. after signing a merger agreement with GMS on June 29. To give regulators more time, the company earlier withdrew and refiled its merger notice, resetting the review period and extending the tender deadline to 11:59 p.m. Eastern on Aug. 22.
The acquisition would fold GMS’s 300-plus branches into Home Depot’s distribution arm, SRS Distribution Inc., creating a combined network of more than 1,200 locations and 8,000 trucks serving professional contractors.
“This acquisition accelerates SRS’s strategy to become a leading multi-category building materials distributor,” SRS CEO Dan Tinker said when the deal was announced.
GMS, based in Tucker, Georgia, generated $5.6 billion in revenue last fiscal year. CEO John C. Turner Jr. and his leadership team are expected to remain after the transaction closes.
As of Aug. 6, about 34.7% of GMS shares had been tendered. Home Depot said it expects to complete the deal by the end of fiscal 2025, subject to final regulatory and shareholder approvals.
