Department store Belk Inc. has been sold to a New York-based private equity firm, according to the Associated Press.

The deal, reported to be valued at about $3 billion, was announced Monday morning.

Under the terms of the agreement, Sycamore Partners will pay Belk stockholders $68 for each of their shares.

The deal comes at a key time for the anchor of the Selma Mall. Belk just signed a new lease at the shopping center.

Though details of the lease weren’t released, store manager Daniel Scoggins said Belk was committed to Selma for the longterm.

“We’re extremely pleased that we’re going to be in the market for the foreseeable future,” Scoggins said in an interview last week.

Scoggins said the Selma store ranks in the top 20 in profitability in its division, which includes about 100 stores in Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma and Tennessee.

Tim Belk will continue as the company’s CEO, and the company will remain based in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Belk said certain shareholders representing the bulk of its shares have agreed to vote in its favor. The company operates nearly 300 stores in 16 states in the South.

The company’s board has unanimously approved the deal, which remains subject to shareholder and regulatory approval. It’s expected to close in the fourth quarter of this year.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.