On the morning of May 3, 2023, Crabtree Small Cap Growth holding Ruth’s Hospitality Group (RUTH) and Darden Restaurants (DRI) announced an agreement whereby DRI will purchase RUTH shares at $21.50/share in cash. This represents a 34% premium to RUTH’s closing price on May 2nd. As we type this, RUTH’s share price is $21.38. Parsing the details, RUTH has a board-approved, all-cash offer at a reasonable valuation from a well-capitalized, strategic buyer who hopes to close the deal in less than two months. We believe the deal is likely to go through…but the middling price leaves room for a higher offer. So we plan to hold on to our shares until the deal closes in mid-June. Or another suitor shows up.