Round two of bids could reportedly be around the corner for the possible sale of Subway.
The foot-long sandwich restaurant chain could see a second group of offers around the end of April, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday, citing unnamed sources. The outlet said some initial bids were not high enough, resulting in those parties being rejected.
Subway could potentially find itself with a buyer by late May after the deadline for the offers closes, the Journal reported.
Private equity firms are among the over 10 entities interested at this time, according to the outlet. They are reportedly in the due diligence portion of the process.
SUBWAY SAYS IT'S CONSIDERING SELLING
Bloomberg reported in late March that private equity firm Roark Capital Group had an interest in potentially buying Subway. Roark Capital did not respond to a FOX Business request for comment.
In early March, Goldman Sachs, Bain Capital, TPG and TDR Capital were identified by Sky News as having interest; however, they all declined to comment at the time.
GOLDMAN SACHS MAY HAVE APPETITE FOR SUBWAY CHAIN
The report from the Wall Street Journal comes roughly two months after Subway officially revealed it was considering the possibility of selling but that "there is no indication of timing or assurance that a sale will occur."
FOX Business reached out to JPMorgan, who the chain picked as its advisor, and Subway, for comment. JPMorgan declined to do so, while the latter did not respond by the time of publication.
Impending financial performance metrics by the sandwich chain are expected to be strong, according to the Wall Street Journal.
In February, Subway said 2022 was a "record-setting year" for the company, with its global same-store sales posting a rise of over 9% year-over-year. North American same-store sales saw growth of nearly 8% in the same time frame, the company also said.
The privately-held chain, whose beginnings date back to 1965, has been led by CEO John Chidsey since late 2019. It has two headquarters, one in Connecticut where it started and a recently-unveiled one in Miami, Fla.
