Casey's loses bid for Kroger convenience stores to British company

Casey's General Stores Inc. won't be adding 783 Kroger convenience stores to the company, after all.

Kroger Inc. said Monday that EG Group of the United Kingdom was buying Kroger's convenience store division for $2.15 billion.

Casey's reportedly had put a bid in to buy grocery store giant Kroger convenience stores, which would include stores in 19 states, according to CNBC. Casey's was one of several companies pursuing the Kroger stores, the report said.

Ankeny-based Casey's has been under pressures from investors to expand its stable of convenience stores with a major acquisition, or sell the company.

More:Casey's creating 101 new jobs at Ankeny headquarters

JCP Investment Management LLC (which owns about $45 million of Casey’s common stock), BLR Partners and shareholder Joshua Schechter have said the company’s shares are “significantly undervalued” and do not reflect Casey’s “earnings power and full real estate value.”

Casey's executives said the company is always looking for expansion opportunities.