08:09 AM EDT, 10/16/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Seven & i Holdings Co.'s recently announced restructuring plan is "too little, too late" and was designed to thwart Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc.'s ( ANCTF ) takeover proposal, a shareholder in the Japanese retailer said, Bloomberg reported overnight Tuesday.

The board should enter into negotiations with the Canadian operator of Circle K stores and seek a price that maximizes shareholder value, the Artisan Partners International Value Team wrote in a letter published on Wednesday.

Last week, the Bloomberg report noted, Seven & i unveiled a plan to split in two, with one business focused on 7-Eleven, convenience stores and gasoline stations, and another that would be a collection of 31 less profitable retail operations that might bring in strategic partners. Prior to that, Couche-Tard had sent Seven & i a new potential acquisition price of 7.1 trillion yen ($47.6 billion), people with knowledge of the matter said.

"The price currently being offered by ACT is clearly superior to the speculative value that could potentially be achieved by implementing the restructuring plan at this late date," Artisan Partners wrote in the letter.

A representative for Seven & i wasn't immediately available for comment.

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