Bite Squad, the food-delivery service, has been bought by Waitr, a similar service that's publicly traded on Wall Street, Waitr said Wednesday.
In a news release, Waitr said it paid $202 million in cash and 10.6 million shares for Bite Squad. Waitr said the common-stock portion of its purchase would be based on Tuesday's closing when the shares closed at $11.26.
Both companies will continue their current online ordering and on-demand delivery separately, Waitr said.
Based in Minneapolis, Bite Squad came to Arkansas after buying Chef Shuttle in May 2017. Waitr, which was founded in Lake Charles, La., arrived in Arkansas a few months later. A third company, UberEats, also is operating in the Little Rock market.
Waitr's news release said Waitr has more than 7,700 "restaurant partners" in 235 cities across the Southeast while Bite Squad delivers from more than 11,000 restaurants in more than 300 cities. Waitr said the combination of the companies will bring their services to 22 states.
-- Stephen Steed
Gas just below $2.09 as state prices fall
The average price for a gallon of gasoline in Arkansas on Wednesday was just under $2.09, according to travel club AAA, about 33 cents lower than the national average price of $2.41.
Nationally, gas prices haven't been this low since mid-December last year, AAA said.
"Motorists are noticing a big difference as they fill up at the gas pump this month," said AAA spokesman Jeanette Casselano. "Month-over-month, gas price averages have dropped double digits for every state. For some in the Great Lakes and Central states (Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska and Missouri) state gas prices are as much as 40-cents less than they were in November. In some states, gas prices are nearing $2 per gallon -- something that hasn't been seen since December 2017."
The average price of a gallon of gas in Arkansas was $2.45 a month ago and $2.22 a year ago, according to AAA records.
-- Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
8 stocks up, 7 down; index advances 1.74
The Arkansas Index, a price-weighted index that tracks the largest public companies based in the state, gained 1.74 to 384.02 Wednesday.
Eight stocks rose and seven declined.
"Equities rose Wednesday but closed well off their highest levels as optimism regarding Chinese trade drove an increased appetite for risk leading to strength in the consumer discretionary and materials sectors," said Leon Lants, managing director at Stephens Inc. in Little Rock.
Total volume for the index was 28.6 million shares.
The index was developed by Bloomberg News and the Democrat-Gazette with a base value of 100 as of Dec. 30, 1997.
Business on 12/13/2018