Expedia to acquire stake in German travel site
Dec 21 (Reuters) - Expedia Inc said on Friday it would acquire a 61.6 percent equity stake in trivago, a German travel search engine that focuses on hotels, for about $632 million, including cash and Expedia common stock.
The deal is expected to close in the 2013 first half, subject to approval from competition authorities. Expedia said in a statement that it expects the purchase to add to per-share profit excluding items next year.
The management team of trivago is expected to continue to operate independently from Dusseldorf, Germany, after the acquisition closes.
Shares of Expedia, which competes with Priceline.com Inc and Orbitz Worldwide Inc, were down about 2 percent to $59.70 on Friday.
Dec 21- Expedia Inc said on Friday it would acquire a 61.6 percent equity stake in trivago, a German travel search engine that focuses on hotels, for about $632 million, including cash and Expedia common stock. Expedia said in a statement that it expects the purchase to add to per-share profit excluding items next year.