Whole Foods-Wild Oats decision put on hold

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- A federal appeals court Monday posed the latest hurdle to the Whole Foods' buyout of Wild Oats, saying it wanted more time to review federal regulators' attempt to block the deal.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia granted the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) until Wednesday to detail its appeal.

The injunction "should not be construed in any way as a ruling on the merits" of the appeal, the court said.

Whole Foods and Wild Oats would have until Thursday to reply.

The FTC, which is trying to block the deal on the grounds that the combination of the two firms would eliminate competition and ultimately harm consumers, would not comment on the ruling.

"We are going to work through this process and are hopeful that we will receive a speedy resolution from the Court," a Wild Oats spokesperson wrote in an e-mail to CNNMoney.com

Whole Foods did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Monday's ruling is the latest development in the proposed buyout. Last week, U.S. District Court Judge Paul Friedman paved the way for the $565 million deal by denying a bid by the FTC to block the merger. Just a day later, Friedman denied an attempt by the FTC to postpone his ruling while antitrust authorities appealed their case.

The Austin, Texas-based Whole Foods, which operates 198 stores both in the United States and in the United Kingdom, launched a bid for Wild Oats in February.

Whole Foods (down $1.30 to $43.00, Charts, Fortune 500) shares fell 3 percent on the news, while Wild Oats (down $0.17 to $17.75, Charts) shares eased about 1.5 percent.