Metro inc. announces plan to buy back shares through private agreements

MONTREAL, Dec. 11, 2013 /CNW Telbec/ - Metro inc. ("Metro") (TSX: MRU) announced today that that it intends to purchase for cancellation, on or before September 9, 2014, up to 1,343,000 of its Common Shares pursuant to private agreements between Metro and three arm's-length third-party sellers. These purchases will be made pursuant to (i) two issuer bid exemption orders issued by the Ontario Securities Commission or (ii) an issuer bid exemption order issued by the Autorité des marchés financiers. The price that Metro will pay for any Common Shares purchased by it under such agreements will be negotiated by Metro and the seller and will be at a discount to the prevailing market price of Metro's Common Shares on the Toronto Stock Exchange ("TSX") at the time of the purchase. Information regarding each purchase, including the number of Common Shares purchased and aggregate price paid, will be available on the System for Electronic Document Analysis and Retrieval (SEDAR) at www.sedar.com following the completion of any such purchase.

These purchases will form part of Metro's 7-million share repurchase program announced on September 8, 2010 (as amended on November 12, 2010) and renewed on September 6, 2013, which allows for purchases outside the facilities of the TSX pursuant to exemption orders issued by a securities regulatory authority, including by way of private agreements at a discount to the prevailing market price. The maximum number of Common Shares which may be purchased by way of all such private agreements cannot exceed 2,333,333, being the one-third of the total number of Common Shares which may be purchased under Metro's 7-million share repurchase program announced on September 8, 2010 (as amended on November 12, 2010) and renewed on September 6, 2013.

Forward-looking Information

We have used, throughout this press release, different statements that could, within the context of regulations issued by the Canadian Securities Administrators, be construed as being forward-looking information. In general, any statement contained herein, which does not constitute a historical fact, may be deemed a forward-looking statement. Expressions such as "continue", "intends", "conditions", "expected" and other similar expressions are generally indicative of forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements that could be contained herein are based upon certain assumptions regarding the Canadian food industry, the general economy, our annual budget, as well as our 2014 action plan. These forward-looking statements do not provide any guarantees as to the future performance of the Corporation and are subject to potential risks, known and unknown, as well as uncertainties that could cause the outcome to differ significantly. An economic slowdown or recession, or the arrival of a new competitor, are examples described under the "Risk Management" section of the 2012 Annual Report which could have an impact on these statements. We believe these statements to be reasonable and pertinent as at the date of publication of this press release and represent our expectations. The Corporation does not intend to update any forward-looking statement contained herein, except as required by applicable law.

Metro Inc.

With annual sales of over $11 billion and over 65,000 employees, Metro Inc. is a leader in the food and pharmaceutical sectors in Québec and Ontario, where it operates a network of more than 600 food stores under several banners including Metro, Metro Plus, Super C and Food Basics, as well as over 250 drugstores under the Brunet, The Pharmacy and Drug Basics banners.

SOURCE: METRO INC.