What analysts said about Supervalu, Caribou

Supervalu's latest corporate maneuvers got immediate recognition from Standard & Poor's Ratings Services. Supervalu recently completed the sale of five of its retail grocery store banners and added a new investor who controls 21 percent of its stock.

S&P raised Supervalu's credit rating from B to B+ and gave it a stable outlook. "The upgrade reflects the substantial reduction in debt,'' S&P credit analyst Ana Lai wrote in a report last week. "The stable outlook reflects our view that a more-focused Supervalu has the potential to stabilize its performance."

Joh. A. Benckiser, the German firm that acquired Caribou Coffee Co. in December for $340 million and California-based Peets Coffee & Tea Inc. in October for $941 million, made a preliminary bid of $9.7 billion last week to acquire Amsterdam-based D.E. Master Blenders 1753 NV. A successful acquisition would make JAB's coffee and tea business competitive with industry giant Nestlé SA. Richard Withagen, an analyst with SNS Securities in Amsterdam, told Bloomberg News: "At this time, I can't see anyone realistically coming with a superior offer."

Patrick Kennedy