P. M. BRIEFING : Grace Plans to Buy All of Del Taco

W. R. Grace & Co. said today that it plans to acquire all shares in Del Taco Restaurants Inc. it does not already own for $3.25 a share or about $5 million.

Grace currently holds an 82% stake in Del Taco, a 149-outlet fast food chain primarily operating in the Southwest that earned $7.5 million in 1988 on revenues of $58.8 million.

Jim Swords, a Grace spokesman, said the company, which sold its 690-unit restaurant group in 1986 as part of a major restructuring, opted to buy all the publicly held shares in Del Taco after a planned management-led leveraged buyout fell through.

The move is intended to give Del Taco greater operating and financial flexibility and save the costs associated with public company obligations, the company said.

Swords said it is possible that Grace will seek a buyer for Del Taco.