Cash America To Acquire 34 Pawn Lending Locations In Georgia And North Carolina

(RTTNews) - Cash America International, Inc. (CSH) announced today that it has signed an asset purchase agreement for the acquisition of substantially all of the assets of a chain of 34 pawn lending locations. Upon completion, the transaction would add 31 pawn lending locations in Georgia and 3 locations in North Carolina, which would expand Cash America's presence in both markets. Currently, the stores are owned by PawnMart, Inc. and operate chiefly under the PawnMart brand in both markets.

The 31 stores in Georgia operate mainly in and around Atlanta where Cash America currently operates 17 pawn lending locations, which would give the company 48 locations in this significant metropolitan area after the transaction closure. Further, the firm would add 3 stores in Charlotte, North Carolina to its existing group of 16 pawn lending locations in North Carolina. The 34 pawn lending locations had about $10.7 million in pawn loan balances as of December 31, 2012.

Cash America expects the aggregate purchase price of the PawnMart locations to be nearly $62 million, which would be paid in cash and funded by available cash and through the company's line of credit. The acquisition, which may close in the fourth quarter of 2013, is expected to be accretive to earnings immediately following its closing.