Court revives U.S. case against Whole Foods deal

By Peter Kaplan

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. appeals court revived a government antitrust case against Whole Foods Market Inc's (WFMI.O) purchase of rival Wild Oats Markets Inc, reversing on Tuesday a lower court decision that allowed the deal to proceed last year.

Whole Foods said it was disappointed by the decision and could seek a review by the full appeals court. Meanwhile, it would carry on "business as usual."

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia said a district court judge erred when he turned down a Federal Trade Commission request for an injunction to block the deal.

U.S. District Judge Paul Friedman "underestimated the FTC's likelihood of success on the merits" when he denied the agency's request, the three-judge appeals court panel said in its ruling. One of the judges dissented from the opinion.

The appeals court remanded the case back to Friedman for further proceedings.

Whole Foods shares fell for a time after the ruling was issued Tuesday morning but closed up 1.6 percent at $22.39 in trading on Nasdaq.

Rating agency Standard & Poor's said it did not see the ruling changing Whole Foods' daily operations or its continued integration of Wild Oats stores. Wild Oats had been effectively "deconstructed" since the acquisition, S&P said in a statement, with store divestments, closures and rebrandings.

Howard University law professor Andrew Gavil said it could take a long time for the FTC to get an injunction because of legal procedures, giving Whole Foods even more time to integrate the two companies.