New York Investor Buys into Winn-Dixie

By Mark Basch, The Florida Times-Union, Jacksonville

Feb. 14–A New York investor has acquired 5.02 percent of Winn-Dixie Stores Inc.’s stock, becoming the first large shareholder of the post-bankruptcy Winn-Dixie to be identified.

In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission this week, Richard Perry indicated he controls 2.7 million Winn-Dixie shares.

The filing does not say how or when he acquired the shares.

Investors are required to file SEC documents when they own more than 5 percent of the stock of a publicly-traded company. Perry is the first investor to make a Winn-Dixie filing since the Jacksonville- based supermarket chain emerged from bankruptcy in November.

Perry, a former partner at Goldman Sachs, formed a hedge fund called Perry Capital in 1988 that invests in a wide range of businesses. The private fund manages $13 billion in investments, according to a November press release announcing the fund’s investment in the Allerton Crowne Plaza, a Chicago hotel.

That press release said Perry’s firm “seeks to develop strong relationships with the management of companies in which it invests.” A Perry Capital representative did not respond to two telephone messages Tuesday. Winn-Dixie spokesman Michael Freitag said the company does not comment on its shareholders.

Winn-Dixie emerged from bankruptcy in November under a plan that cancelled its former common stock. New stock was issued to creditors to pay off debts. That stock began trading in the Nasdaq market on Dec. 22.

The old Winn-Dixie stock was dominated by the Davis family of Jacksonville, who owned 36 percent. But the Davises were wiped out with all the other shareholders when the old common stock was cancelled.

The price of the new stock has jumped this month. After closing at $13.61 on Jan. 31, the stock reached $17.73 last week and has stayed above $17 for the last three trading days.

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