Jones Group to Be Bought Out by Private Equity Firm

The Jones Group announced it's accepted a buyout offer of $15 per share from private equity firm Sycamore Partners. The deal gives Jones, which owns a collection of midmarket fashion brands, an equity value of $1.2 billion. Sycamore will also take on $1 billion in debt, bringing the deal's enterprise value to $2.2 billion. Jones, which owns brands including Nine West, Anne Klein and Easy Spirit, has struggled in recent quarters as sales slumped, and put itself up for sale this summer after the activist hedge fund Barington Capital Group took a 2 percent stake in the company.