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Supermarket chain owner The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co. in Montvale is negotiating to buy Carteret's Pathmark Stores. The possible $12.50 per-share offer is in cash and stock for Pathmark's 52.2 million outstanding shares, a deal worth $652.5 million.

Neither company released further details of the talks. Any agreement would be subject to shareholder and regulatory approval.

Pathmark last entered into such talks in 1999 when Netherlands-based grocer Royal Ahold offered to buy the chain. Royal Ahold is the parent of such supermarket chains as Stop & Shop and BI-LO. That $1.75 billion deal fell through because of opposition from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). The FTC wanted Ahold to shed more stores than it was willing to part with to merge Pathmark with its supermarket portfolio.

A combination between Pathmark and A&P might face similar scrutiny: Pathmark has 141 supermarkets in the Northeast. A&P owns and operates 410 stores across the country under such names as A&P, Waldbaum's, and Super Fresh.

Meanwhile, both chains have struggled in the face of intense competition. Pathmark entered Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection for two months in 2000. The company reported a net loss of $40.1 million on revenue of $3.98 billion for the fiscal year ended Jan. 28, 2006, compared with a net loss of $308.6 million on revenue of $3.98 billion for the prior-year period. A&P, which has been closing underperforming stores, reported net income of $392.6 million on revenue of $8.74 billion for the fiscal year ended Feb. 25, 2006. That compares with a net loss of $ 188.1 million on revenue of $10.85 billion for the prior-year period.