Mondelez International Inc. ended its bid to acquire Hershey Co. after the famed chocolate-bar maker rebuffed a new takeover offer and indicated it would be hard to strike a deal before next year.
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Hershey shares plummeted by 11.4% in late-hours trading – down to $99 (£76) – while shares in Mondelēz rose by almost 4%.
Candy and sundry foods maker Mondelez (MDLZ) jumped more than 3% on the stock market today.
“While we are disappointed in this outcome, we remain disciplined in our approach to creating value, including through acquisitions”. Ms. Rosenfeld also indicated in an official statement that Mondelez has scrapped the deal after “taking into account recent shareholder developments at Hershey”.
Hershey responded that the trust would not be able to consider an offer until it is reconstituted next year, the source said.
Discussions of a possible merger between Oreo owner Mondelez and The Hershey Company have ended after the two companies failed to come to an agreement. (HSY) after the Pennsylvania chocolate maker spurned a new takeover offer and indicated it would be hard to strike a deal before next year. It has been rumored the initial offer price was raised to $115 per share (from $107 originally)-which equates to $27 billion or 15 times EBITDA-however, in line with our prior assessment, this was still viewed as a bit low. Mondelez’s latest bid was rejected by Hershey last week, according to people familiar with the matter.
Major media outlets are reporting that the Illinois-based maker of Oreo Cookies fell short of Hershey’s $125 per share starting price.
Hershey owns the Cadbury license in the US, while Mondelez sells the candy in the rest of the world. She also added that the company is well-positioned in the industry and will continue to add value for its shareholders. About two-thirds of its $12 billion in assets are in Hershey stock. News stories displayed here appear in our category for Business and are licensed via a specific agreement between LongIsland.com and The Associated Press, the world’s oldest and largest news organization. American Air said Kirby’s exit followed discussions in which Kirby was reportedly told he needed to “transition out” of the company.
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Morgan Stanley initially had concerns over the “potential financial merits” of the acquisition, which was first introduced in July.
