Mill Road Capital To Buy Rubio’s Restaurants

(Reuters) – Mexican restaurant chain Rubio’s Restaurants Inc (RUBO.O) said it agreed to be acquired by private equity firm Mill Road Capital LP for about $91 million in cash.

The offer of $8.70 a share represents a premium of about 14 percent to Rubio’s Friday closing price of $7.66.

Ralph Rubio, Dan Pittard and Rosewood Capital, who collectively own about 24 percent of Rubio’s outstanding shares, have committed to vote in favor of the proposed deal, the company said in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Greenwich, Connecticut-based Mill Road Capital owns about 5 percent of Rubio’s outstanding shares, the company said.

In October, Rubio’s received an unsolicited offer from an investor group consisting of Alex Meruelo and his affiliates and Levine Leichtman Capital Partners IV LP to buy the company for about $80 million, but it rejected the bid.

Rubio’s also reported a first-quarter profit of $367,000, or 4 cents a share, up from $245,000, or 2 cents a share, a year earlier.

Excluding items, it earned 5 cents a share.

Revenue rose 1 percent to $46.7 million for the quarter. (Reporting by Renju Jose in Bangalore; Editing by Anne Pallivathuckal)