Wendy's agrees to sell Arby's to private group

ATLANTA — Wendy's/Arby's Group Inc. says it has agreed to sell a majority stake in its struggling Arby's brand to a private equity group.

The Atlanta company had put Arby's up for sale at the beginning of the year, saying it needed to focus on the better-performing Wendy's restaurants.

The buyer is a group led by Roark Capital Group, an Atlanta private equity firm that also owns Moe's Southwest Grill and Cinnabon.

The buyers are paying $130 million in cash for Arby's. In addition, the group will assume $190 million of Arby's debt, Wendy's/Arby's Group will keep an 18.5 percent stake in Arby's.

The companies value the overall deal at $430 million. That includes the debt being assumed, the value of the minority stake that Wendy's keeps and an $80 million income tax benefit for Wendy's.

The deal is expected to close in the third quarter.